And Then there were Tears
by Ilovenumber77
Summary: Dana Scully is a teenager visiting her uncle in Massachusetts. But then she meets a boy who raises questions about her deceased Aunt and mute niece. And most importantly, Dana's confusing quest of being a teen and becoming an adult.
1. A Different Summer

Title: And Then there were Tears

Title: And Then there were Tears

Rating: PG to PG-13. Basic teen stuff, like suggestiveness, but this does have adult material. Not for young children. (BTW, this is an alternate universe.)

Disclaimer: I'm not getting paid to write this stuff.

Feedback: I'd **LOVE **some!!

Summery: Dana Scully is a teenager visiting her Uncle in Massachusetts. But then she meets a boy (humm…wonder who **that **could be) who raises questions about her deceased Aunt and her mute niece. And, most importantly, Dana's confusing quest of being a teen and becoming an adult.

Author's note: At the end

**Chapter 1: A Different Summer**

Dana Scully stepped off the bus into the chilly June air. She was surprised at how cold Massachusetts could be in the summer. She was so used to San Diego, that a _cold _ocean breeze was very foreign to her.

She sat on the bench next to the bus stop sign and looked at her watch: 10:55 A.M. Her uncle said he'd be there to pick her up at eleven.

School had ended for the summer, and having nothing to do, she accepted her uncle Aram's invitation to spend the summer at his house with his five-year-old twin daughters. His wife, Dana's aunt Lidia, died earlier that year from pancreatic cancer. It was obvious that Aram needed help with the kids.

Dana had never really babysat before, but her uncle assured her that they were sweet girls, and watching them wouldn't be too difficult.

She needed an excuse to get away, anyway. She hated being under the thumb of now eighteen-year-old brother Bill. He was going to follow his father's footsteps and joined the navy, but wouldn't leave until the fall. So she left instead, him being such a prick.

And Melissa, she was another one. She was always hogging the phone, talking to her fourteenth boyfriend…and counting. She always made fun of Dana for her flat chest and undeveloped hips. She also teased her on her inability to get a boyfriend.

Dana didn't think her chest to be completely flat, or her hips that undeveloped. She was only fifteen after all. She still had some growing to do. She re-crossed her legs and tucked an unruly stand of hair behind her ear.

She hated her hair. Not the body, because it was long and curly, but she found the orange-red to be rather revolting. Her friend Sylvia said her brown eyeliner softened her flaming locks a bit, having people focus on her eyes. Therefore, she wore it all the time.

She often wished she had Melissa's dark, brown-red hair. She hated envying her sister, but it was just something that was and she accepted it.

Her dad wasn't there to say goodbye. She truly missed Ahab; the last time she saw him was last Christmas. She was proud to be a daddy's girl, partly because she couldn't connect with her mother. Maggi understood Bill and Melissa, and always took their side…on _everything._

Before she left, Bill gave her an awful noogy, saying he hoped the bus wouldn't bring her back. Missy said if she saw any cute guys to get their number for her, if she could.

Charlie was the last to speak with her. Dana adored Charlie, her fourteen-year-old brother. They were very close, always sticking up for each other.

He said, "If you do see any cute guys, get their number, but keep it to yourself."

She smiled at the thought. She despised her sister's lusty relationships, but knew there was something beyond that. She did not desperately want to fall in love, but often pondered the idea of what would happen if the right boy came along.

Her uncle's car pulled up.

"Hey, Rin Tin Tin!" he called, smiling.

"I'll never outgrow that, will I?" Dana mused, approaching the car. She noticed two curious faces peering through the window at her.

"Girls, this is your cousin, Dana. Say hi," Aram said as Dana put her bags in the trunk and got in the passengers' seat.

"Hi, Cousin Dana!" piped up the one with the yellow ribboned hair, while the green ribboned one stayed quiet.

They had long, chocolate-brown hair with curly wisps. Their big eyes matched their hair color. In a way, Dana was jealous.

"The loud one is Madelynn. The quiet one is Leslie," Aram said, starting to drive away.

XXX

The girls went instantly to their swing set as they arrived at the large, white house. Dana took in the scene with a gasp. It was gorgeous, especially the pine trees.

Aram gave her a quick tour of the place, then handed Dana her luggage.

"Your room is upstairs, two doors to the left."

"Why aren't you taking me there?"

"Lidia designed that guest room; I'm afraid I can't enter it," he sighed, going outside to check on his daughters.

She climbed the stairs and looked for the door. It wasn't hard to find; it was painted a soft pink. Not a white pink. Pink pink.

She turned the silver handle and pushed it open.

Her bags fell with her jaw.

The room was oval. There were no corners. The walls were painted the most beautiful of blues, and lined with shelves with dozens of porcelain dolls resting upon them. The window was large, and boxed out so it was like a cubby; a cubby with a chest you could sit cross-legged on as you looked out the window.

The closet was large, the kind you could walk in. And the bed was king sized, covered with colorful quilts and pillows.

Dana's feet sunk into the lush, white carpet as she approached the bed and collapsed on it, stomach first.

She then flipped over onto her back, letting out a sigh of cheerful delight. She felt, oddly blissful as she stared at the stucco patterns on the ceiling. She snuggled into the softness of the blanks and put her hands behind her head and took in the view of the creamy swirls.

She never knew her aunt, but somehow, this room spoke with Lidia's voice.

Dana turned her head to see her reflection in the vanity mirror.

The room defiantly did not fit the red-headed tomboy staring back at her, used to hitting baseballs, getting scraps and keeping frogs and lightning bugs in jars. But, in some unexplainable way, the dolls and flowers belonged in that picture.

And that picture said one thing: she would play in the mud all day, tangle her hair and cut up her knees. Then, come into this room at day's end, clean her face and wounds, comb her hair, and put on something pretty; admire herself in the mirror. She would fall asleep cuddling pillows, not dreaming of the day's events, eating hamburgers and climbing trees, but of this room, and of the girl in her that would never leave it.

"Dana!"

Her thoughts were broken by her uncle's voice hitting her eardrum.

"Yah?" she called back.

"I want to drive you around town, so you know where everything is."

"Okay," she replied, scrambling to her feet. She ran out the door, but shut it with great care. She shook her head, not wanting to contemplate her action now, and thundered down the steps to meet her uncle.

XXX

Dana awoke the next morning to a pounding on her door.

"Cousin Dana!"

She rolled over and looked at the cock on the wall; 8:30.

"Hum?" she groaned.

"Daddy's leaving for work and he needs you to get up!"

"Okay, Madelynn," she yawned, rolling out of bed and quickly getting dressed.

She already knew which one was which, since Leslie never said anything at all. At dinner last night, Madelynn said to her, "Leslie wants you to give her more mashed taters, Cousin Dana." Dana thought it must have been a twin thing, because Leslie said nothing to her sister, and ate all of the potatoes spooned on her plate.

She went down stairs, watching her uncle run out the door.

"Take care of the kids. Don't let them in the pool, even if you're the one watching them. The pot of coffee is for you."

"I don't drink coffee."

He looked at her with curious eyes, kissed his girls, and waved goodbye.

"They haven't eaten anything," he said, and was gone.

Dana sighed and looked over at the girls. They stared up at her, smiling. They wore matching pink outfits and mismatched bows in their hair: one green, the other yellow. She made a mental note to ask her uncle about the colors sometime.

"What would you two like for breakfast?"

"I want a bagel, and Leslie wants popcorn eggs."

"Popcorn eggs?"

"Yah."

"Oh, scrambled eggs. Okay, if you two sit at the table, we'll go to the park later."

"They nod and do as told. She sighed with relief and started cooking.

"Do you want butter or cream cheese on your bagel, Madelynn?"

"What's cream cheese?"

She smiled. "Butter it is then."

XXX

The twins finished their meal by 9:15, and Dana smothered their tiny bodies with sunscreen, applied some to her own skin, grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge, and they went out the door.

The park was only a few blocks away, but Dana insisted holding each one's hand with both of hers, having Leslie carry the water. She was somewhat proud of her natural over-protectiveness of these girls. It made her feel more like an adult.

She sat under the shade of the tree as she watched the girls play in the sandbox. She noticed that Leslie wasn't even talking to her sister, and wonder if she ever talked at all. And if so, to whom?

She wiped the sweat off her forehead with the back of her hand. She took a scrunchy out of her pocket and put her hair up in a ponytail, scanning the playground. There were no other kids there. Weird.

Then Dana noticed a boy sitting on the swings. He looked about her age, maybe older. His body was lanky, and he had short, brown hair. She couldn't see his face, because he was staring at his feet.

"Cousin Dana," said a voice.

She turned to see a panting, sweaty Madelynn.

"Can I have a drink?"

"Sure," and she handed her the bottle.

When the girl came up for air, Dana asked, "Does your sister need any water?"

She nodded. "Leslie!"

Her twin came running over and took an equally extensive gulp.

She took the bottle back and stole a sip herself.

"Okay, girls, when the water's gone, we have to go back home. Do you want to sit in the shade for a bit, then I'll swing you?"

As they nodded and took a seat in the cool grass, Dana remembered the boy was by the swings. But when she looked over, she saw that he was gone.

She also noticed that children started to fill the park now.

XXX

Author's Note: Yep, this chapter's long. It will get juicy, promise. But only if you tell me to continue. Just cuz I started this story does NOT mean I stopped writing _So Much for My Happy Ending _for those who are reading it. I will continue to write that as I write this. I will only post the next chapter if I get reviews. Thanks for reading!


	2. The Weird, the Hated, and the Curious

Title: And Then there were Tears

Title: And Then there were Tears

Rating: PG to PG-13. Basic teen stuff, like suggestiveness, but this does have adult material. Not for young children. (BTW, this is an alternate universe.)

Disclaimer: I'm not getting paid to write this stuff.

Feedback: Got some, but there's always room for more :).

Summery: Dana Scully is a teenager visiting her Uncle in Massachusetts. But then she meets a boy (humm…wonder who **that **could be) who raises questions about her deceased Aunt and her mute niece. And, most importantly, Dana's confusing quest of being a teen and becoming an adult.

Author's note: At the end

**Chapter 2: The Weird, the Hated, and the Curious **

"Now wait a minute, Mr. Socks Fox!

When a fox is in the bottle

Where the tweetle beetles battle

With their paddles in a puddle

On a noodle eating poodle,

THIS is what they call…

A tweetle beetle

Noodle poodle

Bottled paddled muddled duddled fuddled wuddled

Fox in Socks, sir!

Fox in Socks, our game is done, sir.

Thank you for a lot of fun, sir."

The girls giggled as Dana read the last line.

"Now is your tongue numb?"

"Cousin Dana, you can do it better than Daddy!" Madelynn squealed, hugging her bear as Dana tucked her in.

"I can?" she said, moving over to Leslie's bed and tucking her in as well.

"Yah, but Leslie thinks Mommy does it best."

She stared at Madelynn, then at Leslie's quiet, smiling face.

All she could do was smile back. She turned on the nightlight and shut off the lamp.

"Nite-Nite."

"Nite-Nite," Madelynn replied.

Dana shut the door and proceeded down the hallway towards the stairs.

"Cousin Dana!"

She whorled around and opened their door.

"What? What is it?"

"Leslie lost her necklace!"

"What necklace?"

"The one that looks like mine."

She observed the golden cross on the girl's neck.

"Okay, I'll look for it."

"But, Cousin Dana, Mommy gave it to her."

She found it hard to speak. "Alright, if we can't find it, I'll get both of you a soda tomorrow. How about that?"

"Okay. Nite-Nite."

"Nitey-Nite."

She went downstairs to find her uncle watching the news.

"Two hours of book reading, and you lived. I'm impressed."

"Sorry, I don't know how an eight o'clock bed time turned into…" she spied the clock on the wall. "…ten o'clock."

"That's okay."

Scully thought about the soda she promised the girls, and found herself craving one.

"Uncle Aram?"

"Hum?"

"I'm going to run to the drugstore and get a Coke."

"Don't be more than ten minutes. It's late; I don't want you out long."

"I won't be."

"You need money?"

"No, I got some," and she grabbed her sweater and walked out into the warm night air.

It really was a nice night; a full moon, a slight breeze with the taste of the ocean on it, the scent of the pine trees.

She passed the playground and saw the sandbox the girls played in earlier.

_What if Leslie's necklace fell in there?_

She approached it and, after some digging, saw the gold chain glint in the moonlight. She picked it up and put it in her pocket.

"Wow, look, a redhead!"

She looked up to see a guy in the distance.

_Oh, God. Oh God._

She noticed a nearby rock and picked it up, getting to her feet.

Five more guys had appeared to join the first. They were snickering and came closer.

"Where you from, Red?"

"Stay away from me!" she shouted, clutching the rock tightly, scanning the area for an escape route.

"Ooh, a little vicious, huh? What are you doing out here all alone."

They were coming at her.

_Oh, God…oh God!_

"Leave her alone!"

Dana turned to see a boy come out from behind the trees. He was tall, lanky, had short brown hair: he was the boy she saw on the swing.

"Spooky, out for a little UFO gazing, huh?" But even through the insults, Dana could see they were scared, and they started to back away.

The boy, however, came closer to be about twenty feet away from Dana.

"I said, leave her alone."

"We weren't gonna do nothin', just having a little fun, that's all." But they backed off and dispersed, leaving as quickly as they came.

She turned to face the boy.

"Thanks," she said, but didn't drop the rock she was holding.

He glanced at it. "You don't plan on using that on me, do you?"

She ran towards the street.

"Wait!" he yelled.

Hearing his feet running after her, she stopped and turned around, eyes wide.

Seeing her terror, he stopped and took two steps back.

"Sorry, I just don't want you walking…or running…around alone, incase those guys come back."

She stared at him. He had the deepest of hazel eyes she'd ever seen. He really was cute. She wished there was better lighting.

"You're the boy on the swing."

He smiled slightly. "Yah, I saw you under the tree with the two girls."

At her reaction, his smile fled and he took another step back.

"I'm Mulder, Fox Mulder."

She couldn't help but let out a delighted snort. "Do you always introduce yourself like James Bond?"

His smile returned. It was rather beautiful; she hoped it would stay this time.

"No, only to my friends. I like to go by my last name."

"So, I'm your friend now?"

He said nothing.

"I'm Dana, friend Mulder."

She dropped the rock and walked to the street. He walked along side her.

"Where are you going?" he asked.

"To the drugstore."

"You're not from around here, are you?"

She smiled. "Is it that obvious?"

"No, just extremely noticeable."

She giggled. "I'm from San Diego."

"California? Wow, you're a long way from home."

"I'm here with my uncle for the summer. Those were my cousins you saw earlier, the girls. Do you live here?"

"Yah, all my life."

"This place is beautiful. I wished I lived here."

"I can't wait to get away."

"Why?"

"Once you get a rep, it's hard to get rid of."

"The UFO comment? You believe in aliens?"

"That's part of it."

They entered the store. Dana grabbed a coke bottle.

"I'll pay for it," Mulder offered.

"No, I got it."

"You sure?"

"Yep."

She paid and they left the store.

"Are you done with school?" he asked.

She laughed out loud. "God, no! I still have three years to go."

"Really?"

"Yah."

"You just seem older to me."

"I get that a lot. I'm fifteen."

"I still have my senior year to go. I'll be eighteen in October. Oxford's already asking for me."

"The College?! In England?!" She blushed when he looked at her. She looked down at her feet. She wished she didn't overreact, but Oxford?! He must really be smart.

"My Dad's stationed in England right now," she said.

"He's in the U.S. military?"

"Yes."

"What division?"

"Navy, he's an Admiral."

"That's cool. I bet you don't see a lot of him."

"No, I don't. It really sucks."

And they talked just like that as they wound their way to her uncle's house. Dana was surely having a good time.

"That's my uncle's house," said Dana, pointing to it.

"Oh, so your uncle is Aram Fields?"

She nodded.

His face fell. "His wife died earlier this year."

"Yes. I never met her. The last time I saw my uncle was seven years ago, before he was married."

"She was a nice lady." He said this without looking at her, his voice far away.

Dana pursed her brow. "You knew her?"

"It's not important. Listen, I gotta go."

"Don't you wanna come inside and…?"

"No. Remember what I said about my reputation? I don't want it to rub off onto you or your family. It might be best if you didn't mention me either."

She stared at him. "O-okay."

"Goodbye Dana; I had a good time tonight." His smile grew again, and she couldn't help but grin in return.

"Me too. Bye, friend Mulder."

He turned on his heel and walked down the street. Dana watched him go until he went around the bend and was gone.

She looked down at her Coke bottle to see its contents drained. She didn't even remember tasting it. She was too busy enjoying herself.

She entered the house to see a frantic Aram.

"God, Dana, you scared me! Where were you?"

She remembered what Mulder had told her.

"Leslie had lost her necklace so I went looking for it. I found it in the sandbox." She pulled it out of her pocket and offered it to him.

"Sorry that I worried you."

His expression went completely blank. His hand reached out, his fingers hovering over the golden chain, wanting to touch it, but couldn't. It was like there was a barrier between him and the tiny trinket; a barrier that existed, and yet did not exist at the same time.

His hand drew back, and shoved it in his pocket, as if he was ashamed of keeping his hand out in the open.

"Okay, Rin Tin Tin, put it on her bedside stand so she'll be surprised in the morning. I'm going to bed; please don't stay up too late." And with that, he went down the hall toward his bedroom and disappeared.

Dana did as told, creeping into the twins' room and setting the necklace on Leslie's stand. She brushed her teeth afterward and put her pajamas on.

"Today was honestly weird," she thought, crawling into bed and snuggling under the covers. However, she hoped tomorrow would be just as weird.

XXX

Dana sucked on a Now and Later as she watched the girls play on the playground. She noted that Madelynn liked the slide and Leslie preferred the monkey bars.

She was sitting on the swing, where she first saw Mulder yesterday. She wondered why he took great interest in his own feet.

She heard the creaking of chains and turned her head to see that Mulder had sat on the swing next to her.

He wasn't looking at her, but rather straight ahead. He had on that sad smile of his that Dana dubbed as his trademark.

She realized that he wasn't going to talk unless she invited conversation.

"Well, if it isn't James Bond. Are you always such a stealth, friend Mulder?"

He looked at her and chuckled slightly at her light-hearted teasing.

"Not always," he replied.

She looked back down and grinned.

"Have you been to the beach yet?"

"No."

"I could take you if you want."

She looked up.

"I have a boat. It's really pretty at sunset."

"That's nice of you, but I can't. At least not today. Not with the girls…"

"I understand." He looked down at his feet. Why was this boy so sad all the time?

"Look, my uncle doesn't work on weekends. Maybe I could sneak away on Saturday."

If you don't want to go, then you don't…"

"No, I want to go."

He smiled again.

"Cousin Dana!"

She looked over to see Madelynn and Leslie running over.

"What?"

"We're hungry," Madelynn replied. They were both eying Mulder curiously, though, like when they first saw her. But somehow…_different._

Dana looked at her watch: 11:00 A.M.

"Okay." She looked over at Mulder. "Sorry, I gotta go."

"Don't apologize."

She could feel her cheeks redden.

"Will I see you again?"

She took the girls' hands and nodded. "We'll be in the library tomorrow at noon. The children's reading is then."

He nodded and she released one of the girls' hands briefly to wave.

He waved back.

Dana turned and walked down the street, leaving the playground.

"Cousin Dana, who was that boy?" Madelynn asked.

"He's a friend."

"Leslie thinks he's different than other boys."

Dana looked down at her. Did Leslie know him?

"He certainly is curious. Curiouser and curiouser."

Dana never thought she'd say the impractical words from _Alice in Wonderland,_ but everything about Mulder was impractical. If he had friends, why wasn't he hanging out with them, rather than a fifteen-year-old redhead? He was very open and very secretive at the same time.

Why were those boys insulting him, but afraid of him? What kind of reputation did he have? It was deeper than believing in aliens; Dana knew that. He was obviously more honorable then those thugs that cornered her, and yet he didn't want to meet her uncle in order not to get her in trouble.

Or had he already met Aram? He seemed to have known Lidia, and the girls acted like they at least seen him before. But when? And under what circumstance?

She wanted to know more about Fox Mulder. There was a pain and hurt in him somewhere, and she was going to find it.

"Curiouser," she said again, leading the girls into the house.

XXX

Dana took a bite of meat loaf as the phone rang.

"I got it," said Aram, getting up form the table and picking it up.

"Yes, she's available. Dana, it's your brother."

"Which one?" asked, swallowing. She was in no mood for Bill's nagging.

"Charlie."

"She wiped her mouth and took the phone.

"Why are you calling me?"

"Well, hello to you too, sis."

She sighed. "Hello."

"So, how's it going?"

"Good, the twins are easy to handle. How did you get the phone? Did Melissa take a bathroom break?"

"No, Jack and her broke up."

"When?"

"Yesterday."

"How many boys asked her out since then?"

"Four, three of them ex-boyfriends."

"Who was the fourth?"

"Alan Copland."

"Oh, that's why she said 'no'."

"Anyway, I didn't call to…Bill! Quit it!"

Dana heard laughter and scruffling in the background.

"Bill, leave him alone!" she yelled into the phone.

"He's gone."

"What'd he do?"

"Put Jell-O in my ear."

"That little…I would gang up on him with you if I were there."

"I know. Yummm…strawberry."

"Charlie!"

"Just kidding! So did you meet anybody there? Make any friends?"

"Not really. Well…" She looked over to see if her uncle was paying attention. Nope.

"…I met someone yesterday."

"A guy?"

"Yah."

"Remember what I said…"

"Oh, come on Charlie! I'm not looking for that! I hardly know him, but we are becoming friends."

"Dana, I'm not saying the first guy you meet you should date. God knows I don't need another Melissa for a sister. If you two just stay friends, okay. I don't care one way or the other. It would be nice to prove Melissa wrong, though."

"Yah, it would. How you holding up without me?"

Charlie sighed. "Let's just say, if you wanted to come early, I wouldn't lose any sleep over it."

"Sorry. Maybe next year if Uncle Aram wants me again, you can come too."

"Okay, I'll…Missy!"

"Give me the phone!" shouted Melissa's wretched voice.

"I'm talking to Dana!"

"Oh? So Dana, you get those phone numbers yet?"

"Who dumped who, Missy? I bet Jack dumped you, but I really can't blame him. I don't know how anyone can stand your loud mouth."

"I knew it, Minnesota Flats; no numbers 'cuz all the guys run the other way. Goodbye, I'm calling Jared Hicks, see if I can date him, but I don't have to worry; he'll say yes to _me._"

"Wai-!"

Click.

Dana slammed the phone down on the receiver. She really wished Charlie was here with her, instead of with _them._ He couldn't even get 'wait' out before stupid…

"Ugh! I'm not gonna say it!" she yelled aloud.

"What happened?" her uncle asked.

"I **HATE **my sister!"

No one said anything as Dana finished meal.

XXX

"_The Mystery of the Loch Ness Monster_, hum, that looks interesting…," Dana muttered to herself as she placed the book under her arm, next to a copy of _Alexander Graham Bell and the Invention of the Telephone._

She was in the library, looking at books to check out while the twins listened to the read-aloud story.

_'No numbers 'cuz all the guys ran the other way. I knew it, Minnesota Flats.'_

She shook her head, trying to clear her sister's dreadful voice from it.

" 'Minnesota Flats'," she mumbled under her breath, grabbing another book.

"_The DaVinci Code,_ I read that book several times."

She turned to see Mulder smiling behind her.

"Oh, it's you."

"You were expecting someone else?"

"No, I just forgot you were going to be here."

His brow pursed. "Should I be hurt?"

She smiled slightly. "No, I've just had other things on mind."

She walked over to another shelf. He followed.

"I know I shouldn't pry, but what kind of things?"

She sighed. "Do you have and siblings, Mulder?"

She automatically knew she said something she shouldn't have.

His face completely drained of color, his body tensing and becoming ridged as if frozen. His pupils dilated to an alarming degree.

It seemed as though all the air had been sucked out of the room for Dana, and she became frightened.

"Who told you?" His voice was cold and dry, and full of hurt.

"What did…I don't…Mulder?" she couldn't find the words. There were none.

"Who told you?" He asked again.

She said nothing, just gaped at him.

His face fell even more, and he leaned back, blinking after that long, intense stare. Swallowing, He turned his back to her, and walked hastily away, his long legs taking equally long strides.

"Mulder!" she cried, going after him.

The library was large; she was just able to keep up with him as he turned corners.

She barely saw him leaving the building through the front doors and she raced toward them.

She burst out of the double doors, looking down each side of the street.

He was nowhere.

"Mulder!" she yelled again.

He wasn't coming. He was gone.

"What did I say? What happened? What the hell just happen?" she asked herself aloud, feeling threatening tears sting her eyes. Her makeup was going to run, but she didn't care.

Melissa was right; guys ran away from her, even if she only wanted to be their friend.

XXX

Author's Note: Yah, the boy's Mulder. I tried to give as many hints as possible (they're in Massachusetts) but I hope you aren't mad. As you can see, this is NOT your average Mulder/Scully teenaged fanfic. The plot will thicken, promise. Please review if you want another chapter. It will not be cliché, double promise. Angst is on the way. Thanks for reading! Oh btw, the chapter title was meant to mirror _The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly,_ just so you know.


	3. Looking for Answers and Finding Answers

Title: And Then there were Tears

Title: And Then there were Tears

Rating: PG to PG-13. Basic teen stuff, like suggestiveness, but this does have adult material. Not for young children. (BTW, this is an alternate universe.)

Disclaimer: I'm not getting paid to write this stuff.

Feedback: I'd **LOVE **some!!

Summery: Dana Scully is a teenager visiting her Uncle in Massachusetts. But then she meets a boy (humm…wonder who **that **could be) who raises questions about her deceased Aunt and her mute niece. And, most importantly, Dana's confusing quest of being a teen and becoming an adult.

Author's note: At the end

**Chapter 3: Looking for Answers and Finding Answers**

Dana was sitting in the living room watching it clock when her uncle came home. She let the girls watch TV so she could supervise them easily as she waited for her uncle.

"Hey, girls!" he said, emerging from the front door. The twins ran up to hug him.

"Why is the TV on?" He eyed Dana curiously.

She remained placid; her arms folded over her chest and her leg crossed over. "Can I speak with you, in private?"

His face fell slightly. "Sure. Girls, go watch TV, please."

They obeyed and Aram offered a chair in the dining room for Dana.

She walked over and sat in it.

He sat down as well. "What is it you need?"

"Who is Fox Mulder?"

He coughed. "How do you know that name?"

_Now we're getting somewhere._

"I met him a couple days ago. That night when I went to get a soda, some guys cornered me and he got them to back off. He walked me home."

"I don't want you hanging around him."

"Why not?"

"That boy's not right, Dana. He's mental."

"Does this have to do with him believing in aliens?"

"No, not exactly. He tried to kill himself when he was thirteen."

Her eyes widened.

"He was going to go to a mental institute, but his father works for the government and pulled some stings. He was hospitalized for a little over a year."

She was quiet for a moment. "Why did he try to kill himself?"

"That's irrelevant."

"It's _very _relevant. Why kill himself?"

"This conversation is over."

"He acted out when I asked if he had a sibling. Does that have something to do with it?"

"I said, this conversation is over."

Suddenly, something clicked inside Dana's head. "He said he knew Lidia. Did they meet in the hospital?"

"**THAT'S ENOUGH!"**

The barometric pressure lowered. She didn't move, but could feel all of the blood drain from her face and neck. Nothing could be heard except for the soft chatter from the television and Aram's ragged breathing.

"This conversation is not to be brought up again. You are not to see that boy or go out after eight o'clock. If you disobey me, your mother will be notified and you will go straight back to California."

After several seconds of his lucid staring, he marched to his room and slammed the door.

Like an Age it seemed; that's how long Dana sat there, unwavering.

Leslie and Madelynn crept into the dining room, keeping their distance, peering just barely over at their elder cousin.

Dana finally turned to notice the twins, their eyes wide with fear and innocence, faces stark white. She opened her arms, and the girls came into them, crying into her chest as she held them tight.

Whatever makeup Dana had left on her face was washed away by her profuse tears.

_I should have listened to Mulder; I should have listened to him!_

This ran over and over again in her mind. And however impractical, however foolish and childish, she wished she could turn back time, to a night where a boy said his name was Mulder, and a girl said her name was Dana, calling him friend.

XXX

After Aram went back into his room for a second time after diner, Dana put the girls to bed, and waited a time for uncle to come out of his room.

He did not.

She shut off all the lights to the house and, grabbing her shoes, went upstairs to her room.

She sat on her bed, staring at the clock on the wall, listening intently for her uncle to exit his room.

She heard nothing.

At exactly 1:00 A.M., she decided she waited long enough. She slipped her shoes on, tying the laces quietly. She pulled her sweater on and approached her window, crawling up on top of the chest and unhooking the window.

With great care, she pushed it open, having a gust of cold wind greet her.

Rubbing her stinging eyes, she silently crept out of the window, placing both feet timidly on the roof.

Completely outside, she shut her window.

She took a deep breath of the sharp air and tried to relax.

Dana slowly approached the edge of the roof and saw the pile of firewood there. She estimated it to be about a three foot drop from the roof to the top of the pile.

Inhaling again, she reached the edge and sat down, swinging her feet over the side.

She decided it would be better, if something went wrong, that she rode her back down, rather than her face.

Mustering up all her courage, she slipped off the edge.

She had aimed right, having been in the seated position all the way down, but her rear-end wasn't too happy after it was over.

Sighing and rubbing the tender area, she had to figure out what to do next.

_Okay, Dana, you got this far. Now where could he be? The playground? No, he's hiding from me. Where does he live? Oh, hell, he's not home…_

Then the light bulb came on above her head. It was completely speculative and without reason, but somehow, she knew that's where he would be.

She walked briskly down the street, tucking her hair behind her ears to keep it blowing into her eyes. She had to go against the wing to reach her destination.

The taste of salt was thick upon her tongue, as she reached the Atlantic.

She gasped at the view of the violent waves crashing up against the shore, as if it was determined to swallow the sandy coast; to overpower everything. Oddly, it was nothing like the familiar Pacific. This ocean had _life._

She walked up to the shore, right up to the water, and dipped her fingers in the dark, eerie liquid. Cold.

She looked down shore to see a figure sitting in the sand, just away from the waves. His knees were curled up against his chest with his arms wrapped around his legs.

Yes, even though it was dark and the person was far away, she knew it was Mulder.

Dana walked towards him and stopped about twenty feet away. He did not notice her, though. He was staring into the dark waves, into the depths of his mind, into his own abyss.

He looked sad and alone. Not alone just on this beach, but alone in the world.

"It's beautiful," she said. Her words pierced the night air, breaking the rhythms of the soft crashing of water and occasional tree frog chirp.

He stood up quickly and whorled around. His bewilderment only deadened slightly when he realized it was her.

He stared at her, but she was not looking at him. Her gaze was towards the sea, expression unreadable, merely serene.

"It's different from the Pacific, but beautiful, in ways one cannot describe."

He continued to stare at her, shoving his hands in his pockets.

"What are you doing out here?" He asked flatly.

She looked at him. "I don't know. Maybe taking a stroll; maybe sight seeing. Do you care to know?"

His lips parted in surprise and he looked away.

She was asking him if they should end their acquaintance right now. He had never known anyone to ever ask anyone something like that, especially him. She was so different, so…beyond her years. No way she was fifteen. No way.

"Yah, I care," he muttered truthfully.

"Really care?"

He looked up.

"I'm about to tell you things, Mulder, and ask a lot of questions. If your secrets are more important than are possible friendship, tell me now."

He paused, taking in her words. Strangely, they hurt him and encouraged him at the same time, along with tickling his curiosity.

"_Possible _friendship? Dana, I've always considered you my friend, ever since you said, 'Do you always introduce yourself as James Bond.'"

He eyebrow quirked slightly. "That's my quote exactly."

A smile teased the corners of his mouth. "I have a photographic memory. It's more of a curse than a gift."

She snorted. Not in disgust, but to keep the smile of her face.

"If we are the friends you say we are, then it's time for the moment of truth. There is no running away this time when the secrets peak out, Mulder. If you do, I won't waste my time following."

He nodded. "Ask away, but I already know what happened."

"No, I don't think you do."

He stared at her with stunned silence.

"At the library, when I asked you if you had a sibling, I had no idea why you acted out so. When I said things were on my mind, I meant me and my sister. She said some awful things to me on the phone and I was pretty upset."

Understanding slowly dawned on him and he decided to study his own feet. "I'm sorry I misunderstood. What did your sister say to you?"

He returned his gaze to her face when she didn't answer.

Her eyes had widened.

"Dana, this moment of truth can only work both ways."

She turned her head. "It's personal, and embarrassing."

"Then why not talk about it with a friend?"

She met his gaze and he gave her a small smile, trying to encourage her.

She took a deep breath. "She teased me about not being able to get a boyfriend. She really is horrid; she calls me names, makes fun of the way I look." She shrugged; suddenly talking about it wasn't so bad. It made her feel better than Missy, and Missy really shallow.

"Stupid stuff really," she continued. "Now that you mention it, it seems stupid it would affect me at all. I mean, 'Minnesota Flats'? Get real."

Mulder scanned her eyes. That's why she said that phrase in the library. She may have thought it was petty and frivolous now, but he was disgusted.

"Don't _ever _let anyone talk about you that way, Dana. It's cruel. And you are too much of a nice, beautiful person to be harassed and teased in such a shallow manner."

She averted her eyes and blushed, feeling like a child. "Thanks."

"No need for thanks. I merely call them as I see them."

She reddened even more and looked at him and smiled. It was hard not to smile around him.

He smiled back. "So, you really didn't know about the sibling thing?"

She shook her head and lowered it. Maybe this was why Mulder always took great interest in his feet. Oddly, they now seemed not to be a distraction, but rather a shield; a shield to get the words out easier.

"I, um, I went home after that and asked my uncle about you."

The small groan that escaped his lips made her face him.

"I'm sorry. I should have listened to you. He told me to stay away from you. And if he knew I was out here…."

They were both silent for a moment. Not want to push _that _issue, he plowed ahead.

"I shouldn't have deserted you at the library. I should have explained myself, not have left you hanging. But I was so afraid that I was losing another friend."

"I thought I lost one."

He grinned. "So what did he tell you about me?"

"Not much. He got very defensive when I told him you may have known his wife."

Mulder said nothing, so she continued.

"He did say you were hospitalized over a year for…for…" She couldn't finish.

He knew what she was talking about and hung his head.

"_Why?"_

It was the first time she ever sounded young, and he looked up at the irony of it.

Dana had never seen that look on his face before. His face softened, but was full of…something. What, she couldn't fathom, didn't want to try to either.

"It's none of my business anyway…"

"It is your business. I've never talked about this with anyone, haven't been able to. But I can tell you, if you're willing to listen."

"If you're uncomfortable…"

"I'm never uncomfortable. I usually just don't care. I don't give a damn what anybody thinks, except with you. I care what you think. I'm perfectly fine with telling you; it's not like what happened to me it a village secret. But if you want on the inside, I'll let you in. I just want to know if _you _want to know."

She studied him. He was finally acting relaxed, but he really did care about this; it mattered what she thought of him.

"I _need _to know," she breathed, her voice soft and airy.

He nodded. "Then have a seat."

XXX

Author's Note: Sorry to leave you on a cliff hanger, but if I wrote the next bit, the scroll- down thing would be non-existent. Thanks for reading and please review if you want more!


	4. Mulder's Story

Title: And Then there were Tears

Title: And Then there were Tears

**Rating: PG-13 for language and Adult content. LOTS of angsty stuff in here. YOU WERE WARNED!! I don't want any nasty grams saying that they didn't know of the material in this chapter. So, THIS LIVES UP TO ITS TEEN RATING!! Ther, I think that's sufficient. **

Disclaimer: My initials aren't CC, but even if they were, I'm not swimming in a vault of paper bills, getting all the credit for creating this awesome show. And even if I was doing that, I wouldn't be writing this piece of fanfic, and here I am, writing this piece of fanfic. So don't sue me.

Feedback: Yes, Yes, Yes, and did I say YES!? (In other words, it would be VERY appreciated.)

Summery: Dana Scully is a teenager visiting her Uncle in Massachusetts. But then she meets a boy (humm…wonder who **that **could be) who raises questions about her deceased Aunt and her mute niece. And, most importantly, Dana's confusing quest of being a teen and becoming an adult.

Author's note: At the end

**Chapter 4: Mulder's Story**

_"I __**need **__to know," she breathed, her voice soft and airy._

_He nodded. "Then have a seat."_

XXX

Dana walked over to him and sat down on the damp, cool sand.

Mulder sat down next to her. If he were any closer, their shoulders would be touching.

She felt a warm feeling creep up from inside her and wash over her whole body. It wasn't the tingly, hot feeling she got whenever Arthur Welling walked by her in the hallway, the hottest guy in school. No, this warmth was different, and she couldn't place it because she'd never felt it before.

Mulder stared at the ocean, watching the waves come up to his feet, but not quite touching. She watched him, knowing that his mind was slowly slipping from reality.

"I was living a make believe when I was twelve. That whole year of my life, I lived in my head. I guess I still do; I have nobody. But _then_…I just couldn't accept the facts.

"November 27, 1973, was when time stopped for me. My sister, Samantha, was taken from me. I still don't know what happened. I woke up in the hospital three days later, not remembering that night's events. But she was still with me for nearly a year. I simply couldn't accept that she was gone. I would sit in her room and pretend that she was in there, playing with her dolls, me just watching her.

"Soon after I turned thirteen, we had an early snow, and I went outside with my sled. 'Samantha', I called, 'Come with me.' Then I turned around…and she was gone. I realized for the first time that she really was gone, taken, never coming back.

"I sat down in the snow. I didn't move, couldn't move, couldn't breathe. I sat there, my nose running, my mouth dry and my lips chapped. I could feel the cold eating at every part of my body, like I was being dipped in fire. I didn't tense or shiver, just let the cold seep into me. It felt like I was touching evil; touching death. It was oddly comforting.

"My mother found me and took me to the hospital, where they took all my clothes off and put me in a tub. My body temperature was virtually non-existent, but I pulled through. I stayed there for about a week, most of which I slept through. I couldn't stand reality anymore, and when I dreamed, I dreamed of _her._

"We went home and I wasn't allowed to sleep. I had school. I had chores. So I decided that on November 2, 1974, I would fall asleep for the last time.

"I took a whole bottle of my father's sleeping pills, swallowed each pill one by one, crawled into bed and waited to die.

"My dreams…were indescribable. I defiantly took a trip of some sort. There were colors, colors and shapes that don't exist. Samantha was there, but not in her natural form. I truly believed I was in hell.

"My mother woke me up the next morning. I never heard her scream like that before. Never did again. She toted me off to the hospital, yet again. I must have been pretty yellow. They flushed me with fluids twice and pumped my stomach.

"My mother told them that it was an accident; that I must have mistaken them for vitamins.

"We went home. It was November 5th.

"I tried again.

"I got into my Dad's alcohol cabinet and drank a bottle of J&B and got halfway through his Crown Royal, which he had a lot of. I kept vomiting, so I kept drinking.

"When I simply couldn't consume anymore, I took my father's gun, loaded it, cocked it. I was afraid of the pain; that's why I drank all that alcohol to the point where I couldn't think, and I felt as though my stomach was being eaten from the inside out. I was drooling all over the place.

"I put the gun to my head and pulled the trigger. I was so fucking gone though that I shot myself in the shoulder; missed my head entirely.

"I woke up in the hospital a week later. The nurses and doctors stared placidly at me' there was no doubt any longer.

"My father was able to keep me from going to the nuthouse, and it's not on record that I was put on suicidal watch, but I was. I was hospitalized for sixteen months, twelve days, seven hours. During that time, my parents divorced, and I met your aunt Lidia.

"I was allowed to walk around the hospital after a time, and I no longer had the urge to kill myself. I decided that God wasn't going to let me die.

"I saw her walking around the lobby, looking at paintings. She looked strangely happy for wearing a hospital gown. I approached her, and she gave me the most beautiful smile. She knew nothing about me because she had just moved into the district to receive better care. She had recently been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.

"We talked about everything, her and I. I never told her why I was there, but it didn't matter. She didn't pry into my life; just curious about it.

"She was so nice to me; she made me laugh, I made her laugh. I was with her when she received her treatments, when her hair fell out, when she ate and when she puked. I held her hair up as she wretched in the trashcan. I knew she always wondered why the doctors never gave me any treatments for anything, but she never asked.

"We were with each other all the time. She told me about her family. I never told her about mine; they were never there. When hers' was, however, I would hide. I didn't want to intrude and therefore watched from a distance. Hers' was the family I wanted, and had lost.

"She loved to write poems; I would read them and comment on them. They were always good and well written, but not always happy.

"When I was released from the hospital, I visited her every day, bringing her flowers, maybe a new notebook. Her health had taken a turn for the worst after I left, and all the doctors could do was try and weaken her more. Eventually, she could no longer write, and I felt as if I was dying with her.

"She held on for as long as she could, longer than the doctors even expected, but cancers' monster finally won. It took her beautiful life away, from the world, from her family, from me.

"I was with her that day, that bleak, January day that had no air. Nothing but rain, cold rain that you couldn't feel as it hit your body. She wanted me to open the window; she wanted to see the sun, but there was no sun to see.

"Her family wasn't there. Her husband was on a business trip, and the girls were at a relatives' house and they didn't arrive in time. Your uncle hates me because he wasn't the one the one to hear her dying words; I was.

"The twins came by with their aunt. They didn't understand why they couldn't enter their mother's room. I came out and Leslie came up to me. She asked, 'Are you the boy Mommy talks about?' All I could do was nod. She then asked, 'Are you her friend?'

I sat down and nodded. 'Where's my Mommy?'

"'She loves you, Leslie, and your sister. She's gone to a happier place, but you have to think of it as beautiful.' I held her hand. Her eyes were so big, full of wonder and innocence. 'Think of it as beautiful.' She repeated the words, as if trying to understand. After that, she never spoke again. Never.

"Her father arrived and entered the room. God, Dana, his cry; I lost it, it shattered air that had already been shattered. I broke, I ran, I screamed. I found myself in the playground, on that swing, crying insanely and uncontrollably.

"I cried for her, for her family, for myself. I never felt so alone in the world. But then I pulled out a folded piece of paper from my pocket, one of which I never went anywhere without, still don't. It was her poem, one she wrote specifically for me. She told me never to let anyone else read it, not until I found someone as special to me as I was to her."

He looked at Dana, his story finished. His eyes were a deep, blackish brown; his face wanting a response from her, half-expecting not to receive one.

She noticed she was holding his hand. He realized it at the same time and held it back.

She wanted to give him all of the sympathy in the world, but knew he didn't want it.

"I'm really glad you told me, Mulder. I'm glad you trust me."

He squeezed her hand and a sad smile grew on his face. She returned it.

"I'd really like it if you took me on that boat ride, if the offer still stands."

He laughed. He genuinely laughed since she'd known him.

"It still stands," he stated, a wide, toothy grin overtaking his face. Tears of…joy? Laughter?...stained his cheeks.

Dana took her other hand a wiped them away.

"I want to go tomorrow, or rather today. It is Saturday, right?"

He nodded.

"Okay, but can you take me home now?"

"Won't your uncle be mad if he sees us together?"

"He did say he would send me back home, but not before I tell him you're more of a man then he is."

"Dana…"

"It's the truth. If he resents you for being there for his wife when he wasn't, shame on him. He should have given you a ficken' medal, if not a handshake."

Mulder blushed slightly.

"You have to face him someday, Mulder. I'll be with you; I don't think he'll get violent if I'm standing right there. I'm cold, and I'd really appreciate it if you walked me home."

He raised an eyebrow, then got up off the ground, letting go of her hand, just to extend it to her again.

She took it and rose to her full height. He released her hand and took off his jacket, wrapping it around her shoulders.

"Better?" he asked.

She nodded.

"Okay, let's get you home."

And they walked down the beach towards the road together. They were not touching; there was no need. They were connected now, and both knew that neither one could leave the other.

Dana never had a friendship such as this, and suddenly knew what Melissa was missing out on.

XXX

Author's Note: I cried when I wrote this. I really did. I had to stop writing and walk away for a few minutes to calm myself down. I hope you didn't short circuit you keyboards by crying too much. Thanks to all who have reviewed and please keep 'em comin'. I will NOT post the next chapter until I get reviews on this one. I'm curious to see how I did. Thanks for reading!!


	5. Innuendo and Spiced Peaches

Title: And Then there were Tears

Title: And Then there were Tears

Rating: PG to PG-13. Basic teen stuff, like suggestiveness, but this does have adult material. Not for young children. (BTW, this is an alternate universe.)

Disclaimer: I'm not getting paid to write this stuff.

Feedback: Please? Please please please please please please please PLEASE!!

(If I'm being needy, please tell me.)

Summery: Dana Scully is a teenager visiting her Uncle in Massachusetts. But then she meets a boy (humm…wonder who **that **could be) who raises questions about her deceased Aunt and her mute niece. And, most importantly, Dana's confusing quest of being a teen and becoming an adult.

Author's note: At the end

**Chapter 5: Innuendo and Spiced Peaches**

"Oh crap, how am I going to get back in?" Dana was trying the door handle with no success; it was locked.

"Don't you have a key?" Mulder whispered.

"No, Aram never locks his doors. In fact, I'm sure this door wasn't locked when I left."

He sighed. "Your uncle's up; he knows you're gone. I guess you're gonna have to tell him I'm more of a man than he is."

She smiled at the irony, giving him a friendly punch on the arm. She looked up to observe the windows. "None of the lights are on. If he was up, couldn't he have just left the front door open and confront me when I walked in?"

"Yes, but he knows you'll be with me, and he doesn't want to deal with me. He probably went back to bed. He's punishing you by having you work your way back into the house, or be forced to sleep outside. He'll confront you tomorrow."

She huffed. "Well, I am defiantly _not _staying out here tonight."

"How did you get out of the house in the first place?"

She pointed to the wood pile up against the house.

"You jumped from the roof onto _that_?! Jesus, Dana you could have killed you're self!"

"I have an older brother, friend Mulder. You'd be surprised what kind of fetes I've had to survive. Being thrown into a pond that was twenty feet deep at four years old was just _one _of the crazy things Bill did to me. I learned to swim real fast."

Mulder put a hand on her shoulder and squeezed it lightly. "I already hate you brother."

"You and everybody else. Bill's a real asshole…to _everyone. _He's done with school and going into the navy, but isn't leaving fast enough; part of the reason I came here."

He smiled, and dropped his arm back down to his side. "Come one, let's go around the house to see if there's another way in."

They went around the house, trying doors and windows. Mulder found the basement window to be unlocked.

"Hey, Dana, I got it open."

She met up with him and stared at the dusty glass pane. "I've never been in the basement. I don't know how high of the ground I'll be, or if anything will be under me."

He grinned slyly. "Well, when in doubt, show the girl your penlight." He reached into his pocket and pulled it out, flicking it on to see her aghast face.

"Mulder!"

"Sorry, innuendo is one of my strengths, or weaknesses, depending on how you look at it."

He shined the light through the partially open window.

"It appears to be a six foot drop, and there's nothing that your going to fall on, but there's all kinds of food in here. There's pickle barrels and cans and jarred…are those spiced peaches?"

"Mulder, think of food later. I need to get in."

"Yah, I think I can lower you down, just be mindful of the puddles. The floor's really wet."

He lifted up the window all of the way and she crawled in backwards, wiggling herself over the ledge with her stomach. When she reached to where her hips were about to go over next, her legs already dangling helplessly, he put the penlight in his mouth, grabbed her hands, and eased her down.

"Are you touching the bottom?" he asked.

"No."

"I don't think I can lean over any further without falling in."

"It's okay, let me go."

"I don't…"

"Mulder, I'm probably an inch from the floor. I trust your judgment; let me go."

He hesitated for a moment, then released her.

She dropped down. "See? No problem."

"That was more than an inch."

"Okay, two feet, but I'm fine, right? I told you, a cruel older brother makes you withstand anything."

"I'm dropping down my penlight," he said, doing so.

"Don't leave until I find the door, alright?"

"I won't leave until you tell me to."

She picked up the light.

"Ew," she said flatly. Not like a girlish interjection, but rather as-a-matter-of-fact statement.

"What?"

"You didn't wipe it off. Your drool is all over it."

"You don't like my juices on your hand?"

She threw him a look.

He shrugged. "I can't help it."

"Wait there, and _don't talk_."

An overly-whimsical smile grew on his face and he gave her the thumbs up.

She wiped her hand on her pant leg and shined the light around, spotting the stairway.

"I think I found the way out. I'm gonna see if the door is locked."

She crept up the wooden steps. They creaked horribly.

"Be careful," she heard him call.

"It's fine." She got to the door and tried it.

"It's open! I'm home free!" She walked back towards the window.

"Here's your light."

"Keep it."

"Keep it? As in, _keep it _keep it?"

He nodded. "Just toss me up a jar of spiced peaches."

"That doesn't seem like a fair trade. Besides, why would I want this slobbery thing?"

"Fine, you can give it back to me later, but can I still have the peaches?"

_Man, he can be a little kid when he wants to be._

"If you can catch them."

She threw the jar at him, which he caught with one hand.

"Show off."

"That's for aiming it at my head. I'll be here early in the morning, to take the heat for you."

Her expression softened. "That's brave of you, Mulder."

He shrugged. "Like you said, I'll have to face him sometime. And I don't want you to get in trouble and sent home."

"Thank you, friend Mulder. I don't want to go home just yet."

He smiled and waved. That odd warm feeling arose in her again and she waved back.

Mulder then got up off the ground and disappeared.

Dana found that the warmth washing over her body was not leaving with him.

XXX

Dana took her shoes off and crept softly through the house and into her room. She looked at the clock: 3:16 A.M.

_Wow, I was only gone for a little over two hours? It seems longer then that._

She sat down on her bed, not feeling the least bit tired.

Not bothering to get into her pajamas, she laid completely down on her bed and put her hands behind her head. She stared at the now familiar stucco patterns on the milky white ceiling, and relived tonight's events in her mind.

She found it odd how she knew where Mulder would be in the first place, but what she found even odder is what he told her. He told her _everything_, when she almost completely expected he wouldn't. He took in her confessions and answered her questions, but not with apathy. He _cared_ how she reacted to his story. It _mattered_ to him what she thought of him. And he said that never happens to him, more or less.

And this never happened to her. She never met somebody who trusted her like this, who cared about her like this. And what was this warmth that she got when she was around him, and lingered afterwards? It's happened twice now. What was it?

She felt her right hand with her left; the one that was held by his. His hand was large, and smoothly rough. It was warm, and cold at the same time. She noticed that his hands never stay still, especially when she was holding one. He would extend his long, piano man fingers slightly and then re-clasp her hand, just to extend his fingers again.

She'd never held a boy's hand before, but she was pretty sure handholding was not all the same. Melissa held on to her guy's hand like he was a piece of property, _her _property. Mulder didn't hold Dana's hand like he owned her, nor did Dana hold Mulder's hand like she owned him. She wasn't sure how she felt about his hand entwined with hers, but did know that she wanted to do it again.

Suicide. She never really thought of the serious of it, until now. He tried to kill himself, twice. What compelled him to do so? And what made him stop? She knew he was broken by the disappearance of his sister, and his parents were obviously not the greatest. But maybe there was one more piece, one more piece that caused his soul to sink. Maybe a piece that he didn't even know existed.

She wrapped her arms around herself, trying to feel closeness-for a kind of self comfort-and noticed that she was still wearing Mulder's jacket.

_He must have forgot I was wearing it. I'll give it back tomorrow with his 'juicy' penlight._

What she didn't know was that Mulder was have way across town, and he was well aware that Dana sill had his coat, but he didn't know why he didn't take it back.

He rubbed his left hand with his right, wanting to feel her fingers graze his again.

XXX

Author's Note: I hope you guys liked this chapter! I lightened it up a bit, but kept the angst. I kinda stole the spiced peaches thing from _Holes, _but I thought it was a genius idea, so I put it in my story. Please review. I live for feedback. Thanks for reading!


	6. Already Awake and Waking Up

Title: And Then there were Tears

Title: And Then there were Tears

Rating: PG to PG-13. Basic teen stuff, like suggestiveness, but this does have adult material. Not for young children. (BTW, this is an alternate universe.)

Disclaimer: If you're curious, sue me and see how little you get. CC makes A LOT more than me, to be vague.

Feedback: love LOVE **LOVE **some!

Summery: Dana Scully is a teenager visiting her Uncle in Massachusetts. But then she meets a boy (humm…wonder who **that **could be) who raises questions about her deceased Aunt and her mute niece. And, most importantly, Dana's confusing quest of being a teen and becoming an adult.

Author's note: At the end

**Chapter 6: Already Awake and Waking Up**

Dana awoke, not opening her eyes. She loved those kinds of mornings, where your mind wakes up gracefully and calmly as not to disturb the rest of the body; not even the eyelids.

The blankets felt soft around her, and she could just stay like that forever, but knew better of it.

She opened her eyes to see a dim light shining through her window. She glanced at the clock: 6:03.

_Weird, I had less then three hours of sleep and I still feel refreshed?_

She quietly got dressed and opened the door to her bedroom. She padded softly down the stairs. She knew her uncle was awake, or would be awake sometime; confronting him was inevitable. But she stayed silent anyway.

She reached the bottom few steps and peered around toward the dining room. Aram was sitting at the table, no coffee, no food, just sitting there, staring at her.

She lowered her head and bit her bottom lip.

"I see you've got back into the house. Have a seat."

She slowly made her way towards the table and sat at the far end, across from him. He was already dressed and groomed, on a non-work day. How long had he been awake?

She said nothing and folded her arms across her chest as he put his hands on the table and laced his fingers together. He was angry, but was controlling it, because he knew he had the power.

"I'm not going to even bother discussing this situation to you, Dana, because both of us are well aware that you deliberately disobeyed me. You knew what the consequences were, but it seems that they did not sink in. I will spell them out to you.

"Today will go as follows: You are not to leave this house at any period of the day for any reason. This afternoon, your mother will be contacted and your conduct will be explained to her. Whether you want to talk to her or want me to do it, I don't care. After that, I am driving you to the bus station and you are going home."

"I'm not going home."

"If you want to eat, you will."

She shifted slightly. It was not a joke; he was being serious. He was acting, unknowingly, out of pure ignorance, and it made her fume. He thought he could dominate over this whole situation. Have her gravel at his feet. 

So she threw back the statement he was least likely to expect.

"I guess I'm going to starve then."

It did not faze him at all.

"What do you see in this boy? What so great about him that you go out and see him in the middle of the night?"

"Don't treat me like I'm stupid. You refused to give me answers, so I went out and found them."

"You found nothing. Fox Mulder will do nothing but hurt you; use your innocence to make you believe whatever nonsense he makes up. He only wants one thing."

"No, he doesn't and you know he doesn't. He told me everything last night; how his sister was taken from him when he was twelve, his emotional breakdowns and his hospital visits. Even his suicide attempts. He mostly talked of Lidia, though."

Aram tried to interject, but Dana kept pressing.

"He told me how he met her and spent time with her. He was with her through her happy days and her sickest days. Lidia cared for him like no one ever did and then she died. She died and there was nothing he could do about it; there was nothing anyone could do. He was next to her death bed when you weren't…"

"He…"

"…**AND **he heard her dying words and Leslie's last spoken words and that's why you hate him."

The silence that followed was damning. Nothing moved, nobody breathed.

But Dana controlled that silence.

"Petty jealousy, a grown man being jealous of a boy; it's nothing more than that."

Aram stared at her, with rage and sadness and awe and several other emotions that she could not comprehend.

"I'm not going home."

A knock on the door broke the still air.

Solemnly, Aram stood and walked over to the door, hesitating slightly before opening it.

He knew who it was, as Dana knew.

Mulder stood in front of her uncle, a proximity neither had ever experienced.

She thought this was probably there first time face to face.

Mulder's face was as flat and expressionless as Aram's, except for that small, crooked, sad smile he always wore that was unnoticeable, that Dana noticed.

"Sir, I know that I am the last person that you want to see, but I think it's time we had a talk, a talk that Dana suggested I have with you. I agreed with her. After it's over, you can tell me to go and you'll never see me again. But first and for most, I don't want you to punish Dana for this. I pulled her into this, something you didn't want her to know. It's not her fault."

He stopped talking momentarily. Aram looked over at Dana briefly, but Mulder did not. He knew it wasn't his place. His eyes and head remained in Aram's direction.

The older man said nothing, but Dana knew he was pondering, pondering more than should ever be pondered.

"This is a battle only you and I should fight."

He looked back at Mulder at the sound of those words. It was a fight, but Aram never saw it like that, until that moment.

Dana looked at Mulder. He face was so forlorn and sad, not from not wanting to do this, because it had to be done, but because he did not want to see this man break. He already saw that once and did not want to be the cause of the second time.

She wanted him to look at her, so she could give him some kind of reassurance, but knew that his words were also meant for her; it was not her fight, so she had to step away.

"Dana," Aram said, his voice soft and gentle, but still serious. "I want you to step outside. The boy and I need to talk, _alone._"

She didn't even try to protest. She wanted to be there so badly for Mulder and felt helpless and on the verge of tears, but refused to cry. Staying strong would keep him strong, and he needed all the strength he could get.

She got up and walked towards the door, not making eye contact with either of them, and exited it. She noticed one of Mulder's hands wasn't in his coat pocket. She reached out slightly and brushed the tips of her fingers against his, so her uncle wouldn't notice. But it didn't matter if he noticed or not; nothing less than the will of God as going to part them. Nothing.

Mulder made no reaction at their brief contact, but she knew he accepted it, needed it.

"If I may, sir?" he said, motioning toward the doorway.

Aram stepped back and opened the door farther. "Come in, son."

Mulder hesitated at the word 'son'. Only Dana noticed this and wondered if his father ever called him 'son' in such an endearing manner.

A single tear escaped and ran down her cheek as Mulder entered the threshold and her uncle closed the door.

Author's Note: Sorry for not updating sooner, but my monitor died on me and I had to get a new one. I know this chapter is short and EXTREAMLY suspenseful, but I will update ASAP, if my computer doesn't die…again. This is more angst then I've ever written in my life and I find it difficult to write it without tissues, AND I'M THE AUTHOR!! I guess I just really get into it, especially when I have to re-read it to grammar check it. Hope you like the story as of thus far and please leave reviews. They are appreciated, and if you write FF, you know exactly what I'm talking about. Thanks for reading!


	7. By the Tears of Angels

Title: And Then there were Tears

Title: And Then there were Tears

Rating: PG to PG-13. Basic teen stuff, like suggestiveness, but this does have adult material. Not for young children. (BTW, this is an alternate universe.)

Disclaimer: I did not create Mulder and Scully. I just play around with them a bit.

Feedback: Sigh. (clears throat) PPPPPPPPPPPLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLEEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAASSSSSSSSSSSSEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE?? (cough, sputter, choke…)

Summery: Dana Scully is a teenager visiting her Uncle in Massachusetts. But then she meets a boy (humm…wonder who **that **could be) who raises questions about her deceased Aunt and her mute niece. And, most importantly, Dana's confusing quest of being a teen and becoming an adult.

Author's note: At the end

**Chapter 7: By the Tears of Angels**

Dana sat cross-legged in the grass. It was cold, plushy, dew covered earth that would probably stain her favorite jeans, but she just sat there, not caring, picking away at the blades that surrounded her, listening to their silent screams.

She didn't know how long she had been sitting there. She kept returning her gaze to the house, its oblique windows and deathly stillness haunting her conscience.

There was no yelling, but that just frightened her more. She wanted to be in there so badly, to make sure that Aram wouldn't hurt him.

However, the girls were in there, asleep in their beds, making it hard for her to believe that her uncle would engage in physical violence.

But Mulder only needed words to be hurt.

Then again, this situation must be hard for Aram too. He lost his wife in this mess. Not that it was caused by any specific party, but he was hurting, and blindly blaming. Dana could see that.

She sighed and put her face in her hands. Her hair toppled around her face and she pulled her scrunchy out of her pocket and put it up in a loose ponytail.

She got up off the ground, dusting off her now green pants and walked over to a rather large tree, leaning up against its thick, sturdy trunk.

She observed her left hand, the pads of her fingers still tingling from Mulder's contact with them. She did not want to touch them now, in fear that she would wipe away that feeling that she had never known existed until last night.

How can simple contact between two simple people be so…_complex?_

Unable to resist temptation, she met those fingers with her other hand, smoothing over the area with her thumb, palm, knuckles. The slight tingle remained.

And by some odd impulse, one of which she did not know she possessed, she raised her left hand to her face and placed the tips of her fingers to her lips.

The door opened and Aram stepped out of it.

He met her gaze and held it for a while.

_Oh my God; he's been crying._

"You can come in now, Dana," he said, his voice soft and wavering.

She approached him and he held the door open for her. She entered the house to see Mulder on the couch. Not lazing on it, sitting with his feet flat on the floor, his back leaning slightly forward with his arms draped over his legs with his fingers knitted tightly together.

He was looking straight ahead, thinking of…she didn't want to know.

As the sound of her light foot steps grazed his eardrum, he turned to face her.

His eyes were watery and black. The blackest, lifeless eyes she'd ever seen. But as soon as his eyes had rested upon hers, they softened, dried, and started to fade back to a grey-hazel.

She smiled slightly and his sad, trademark grin appeared on his face in response. She made her way to the other side of the couch and sat next to him. Not as close as they did on the beach, but close enough for Dana to feel that familiar warmth surround her. She let out a soothing sigh of contentment, even with the darkness of the situation looming overhead.

Her uncle came in and sat down in the recliner across from them. His face was grave and stern, but not angry.

"Dana, Fox has told me that everything he has said today, he told you last night. Is that true?"

She swallowed. "Um, he told most everything last night, yah."

He nodded, looking down and sniffing. Whether it was to repress tears or not, she didn't know.

After a few silent moments, Aram raised his head. "I don't blame anybody for the death of Lidia. I don't blame the doctors and I certainly never blamed Fox. But, I've always felt…as if I've missed something. As if…there was something more I could have done. I was hardly there; I didn't bother visiting often because I was so…_so _convinced she would get better." His wiped away a forming tear from his eye.

Dana felt that swelling feeling in her throat. She'd never seen a grown man cry.

"I got the call, and I couldn't believe it. I was sure that there was some kind of mistake, that somehow what was happening, wasn't really happening.

"I didn't make it. I saw my children outside of the room, not permitted to enter. I saw Fox, his face expressionless as he sat in the waiting chair.

"I knew what had happened, I knew that she was gone, but I couldn't accept that. Not until I placed my hand on her cold, colorless cheek. I went through what Fox went through when he was thirteen; we simply couldn't believe that the unimaginable could…"

He took a sudden intake of breath, several sobs following afterward.

"…And I'm (sniff) just now…realizing…" He steadied himself after a deep sigh. "I'm just now realizing that Fox and I were, and still are, in the same boat."

She looked at Mulder, who was staring at her uncle. Tears stained his cheeks. She wanted to wipe them away, but knew that she couldn't.

Something tickled her nose and she rubbed the area, to find it cold. She pulled her fingers back to find them covered with the wetness of her tears, and wiped her eyes and sniffled some.

"Sir…" Mulder started.

"Aram, please," he interjected.

Mulder nodded, wiping his cheeks and clearing his throat. "Aram, I know it was wrong of me to drag your niece into all of this, and I don't think I can apologize enough for that, but I hope you will not punish her for…"

"She's not in any kind of trouble. I no longer have a grudge against you; therefore there is no fault on her part. She's a smart girl and would have pieced it together eventually anyway."

They both glanced at the redhead and she blushed slightly.

"If all is forgiven," Aram continued, "I hope we can put this all behind us, and build something Lidia would have wanted."

"There's nothing to forgive," Mulder replied, a happy smile teasing the corners of his mouth. He outstretched his hand, and Aram took it, a firm shake followed that made a wide, happy grin grow on Dana's tear stained face.

Aram smiled as the darkness lifted and he let go of Mulder's hand. "Now, you said that Lidia gave you some of her poems?"

"Yes."

"Do you mind if I read them?"

"Of course not. I can bring them over later and you can have them. I have a boxful. I would've…" He trailed off as tiny footsteps could be heard creeping down the stairs.

All three looked over to see twin girls appear wearing identical white nightgowns.

"Good morning, girls," their father said. "We have a visitor today. This is mommy's friend, Fox."

They turned their gaze toward the younger man and smiled.

"Mommy's friend?" Madelynn asked, her brow pursing in an inquisitive manner.

Leslie said nothing and left her sister's side, slowly approaching Mulder. She was soon standing directly in front of him. She cocked her head to one side, sweetly grinning.

"Beautiful?"

The tears and laughing and joyous squealing and screaming that followed was surly the equivalent of angels.

Author's Note: Not leaving one, but I will say I won't post the next chapter without getting some reviews from this one. Thanks for reading!


	8. Tony and Maria

Title: And Then there were Tears

Title: And Then there were Tears

Rating: PG to PG-13. Basic teen stuff, like suggestiveness, but this does have adult material. Not for young children. (BTW, this is an alternate universe.)

Disclaimer: I did not create Mulder and Scully. I just play around with them a bit.

Feedback: It is very appreciated, but you already knew that.

Author's note: At the end

**Chapter 8: Tony and Maria **

"How far are we going out today?" Dana asked, leaning over the edge of Mulder's ferry.

Well, it wasn't really a ferry, but it was luxurious enough to be one. It had four furnished cabins for long distance boating. It was expensive, even though it was well used.

Mulder was standing at the wheel, slowly turning it as they sliced through the water. His fingers slightly drummed the rim, and he turned to face Dana briefly, just to return his eyes toward the blue horizon.

"Until we can't see the shore anymore. I thought we'd squeeze in a little fishing before we go back, which probably won't be 'til late."

She glanced at her wrist watch. 11:22 A.M.

"Fine with me. Why 'The Jet'?"

"What?"

"The name of the boat."

"Oh, Samantha named it. Her favorite movie was _West Side Story_."

"I have to admit, the gang name 'Jets' was cooler than 'Sharks'. That part of the movie always cracked me up. I mean, I know the writers softened it up on purpose, but it took me a while to get into it. It didn't become serious until Riff and Bernardo died, and I never felt the connection between Tony and Maria. Why did your sister like it so much?"

He shrugged. "I don't know; I never asked her."

"Maybe it was that 'Officer Crumpkie' song. It was the best song in there. It opens up a whole new perspective of things; makes you think of how life is for others, and why they are the way they are. I decided to not be mean to anybody after that, with the exception of my siblings. Could be why your sister loved the movie."

He looked at her and smiled. "Can't believe your uncle let you come with me."

"Why not?"

"I was sure he would want to come with us."

"He needs to spend time with his girls. He hasn't been able to talk to them about their mom. He told me they were going to visit her grave today. However, he also told me he expected me to be back by nightfall, before he slipped in a little private word with you."

She cocked her head to one side and smiled, raising her eyebrows.

He rolled his eyes. "It was just a warning he gave to me, Dana. He cares a lot about you, and I respect him for that."

She looked back out towards the sea. "Being out here…it reminds me of my father. It's clear to me why he wanted to be a navy man, just look at it out here." She stood up straight and stretched some, taking a deep breath of the saline air.

He chuckled slightly. "You're a real Daddy's girl…in a good way," he added.

"What do you mean?"

"I want to meet your father; he seems to be a good man."

"He is. I miss him."

"Well, he's a lucky man."

"Why do you say that?"

"He has you."

Dana found it hard to respond to that, and looked towards the shore.

"I can't see land anymore," she said.

"Oh, oops, must have lost track of time." He turned off the engine.

"You want to help me with the anchor?"

"Sure," she replied, letting her hair down now that the wind had slowed.

XXX

"Oh my God! I got one!" Dana shouted, pulling on her pole.

Mulder pulled his line out of the water and rushed over.

"Hurry! It's pulling me in!"

And it was. She was now leaning over the side, fighting it with all her might.

"It's okay, I got it." Mulder came up behind her, wrapped his arms around her shoulders, and grabbed the pole, pulling her back into the boat.

"Jesus, this thing it putting up fight," Mulder said, gritting his teeth.

"What do you think it is?"

"I don't know, but it's big!"

Suddenly the line snapped, and Dana screamed as they fell backwards.

She landed on top of him with a thud.

"Are you okay?" Mulder asked, coughing. "Did the line get you?"

"No, I'm fine. I think it won."

"They do (cough) that sometimes (cough) (cough)."

"Are you okay? I didn't crush you, did I?" she asked, rolling off of him.

He laughed. "No. I just got the (cough) wind knocked out of me. I landed on my back." He sat up.

"Sorry."

"It's not your fault. Besides, I like being on the bottom; missionary's overrated."

She punched his arm.

"Ouch! I'm kidding, I'm kidding!"

"You're right; you're good at pulling those right out of your ass."

He smiled, rubbing the injured area. "Who taught you how to punch so hard?"

"I taught myself. I got tired of Bill pushing me around, so I learned a few moves. Two years ago, he was babysitting us and he pushed my chair over while we were eating. I blooded his nose and dislocated his kneecap, with a broken wrist. He doesn't mess with me much anymore, at least not violently."

"He broke your wrist?"

She nodded. "Charlie and I counted all the broken bones he gave us over the years. Together, we tally at nineteen."

"Nineteen?!"

"I told you I was toughened up."

He sighed and lay down again, putting his hands behind his head.

"What are you doing?"

"Relaxing." He closed his eyes.

"Okay…and?"

He opened one eye and looked at her. "Why does there have to be an 'and'?"

"Well, I thought we would cast another line."

"You want to?"

"Not really. I'm pooped after that one."

"Okay then." He shut the eye that was open and breathed in deeply.

She sighed and rolled her eyes, then lay down next to him, staring at the darkening sky.

"It's getting dark," she stated, imitating him and placing her hands behind her head.

"Yes, it is."

She looked over at the gloomy clouds creeping towards them from the far out sea.

"It looks like it's going to rain soon.'

"Um hum," he muttered in agreement, "I can smell it."

She stayed quiet for a bit, listening to his breaths. They were deep and even.

"Do you do this all the time?"

"Do what?"

"Just lie here and breathe in the saltiness?"

"Not really. I don't go out on the water often."

She tore her eyes from the grey sky and looked over at him. His eyes were still closed, and he looked completely relaxed, like he let himself go.

She turned her gaze skyward again. It was weird lying there and not talking. When you couldn't hear words, all you could do was feel, and she felt warm.

She was getting used to that feeling, and it almost _tickled_ now.

"Dana?"

"Yes, friend Mulder?"

"Do you mind if I hold your hand?"

She pursed her brow and looked over at him. His eyes were open, but they were towards the sky.

"Did you spend all that time thinking of whether or not to ask me that?"

He nodded.

She sighed. "Of course you can."

He turned his head to face her as she removed her hands from behind her head and lowered her arms to have them lie naturally on the wooden deck.

He did the same, then slowly inched his left hand over to her right.

She waited as he took his time. His fingers finally made contact with hers, tentatively grazing them for a moment, as if scared. Then he smoothly slipped his hand into hers. He gripped it loosely at first, then tightened his grip a little, putting his fingers into their extending and clasping routine.

He looked up again. "Is this the wrist your brother broke?"

She sighed when he looked away from her. She didn't know why it bothered her so.

"Yep."

He rubbed his thumb over her wrist, being very slow and gentle.

She realized how big his hands were compared to hers for the first time.

"He should know better than to hurt you."

"Perhaps, but I'd say I healed up quite nice, don't you think?"

He returned his thumb to its rightful place and sighed.

She liked the way his hand felt in hers; rough, with calluses, and all she could do was feel it, because he wasn't talking.

"Are you thinking of something else you want to ask me?"

His fingers stopped moving and he looked at her. His eyes were a dark green, slightly glossy, and the pupils were dilated. "I'm just wondering."

"Wondering what?"

He paused. "Wondering why there are actually men out there who have rejected you; why your siblings are so mean to you; why you are so beyond your years, and why you're here with me."

She searched his eyes. They looked sad, but held no sadness. "Well, I can probably explain the first three things, but as for the last…" She stopped. It wasn't that she didn't want to say the wrong thing; she simply didn't have anything to say.

"I know; I'm at a loss for words too."

"Is that a bad thing?"

He shrugged. She thought it looked kind of weird to watch him shrug while lying down.

"Could be," he replied. "Maybe not."

They stared up at the sky for another long while, watching it turn from a bluish grey to a dark purple. Mulder started to move his fingers again, and they lay there enjoying the contact.

"Well," Dana chided, breaking the silence, "I might not have an answer to the forth part, but I do know that I'm glad I'm here."

He looked over at her and she did likewise.

"I'm glad that I'm here with you and I'm glad that I met you…and I'm glad you're my friend."

He smiled and let out a delighted snort.

"What?"

"No one's ever said that to me."

"You don't have any friends, do you?"

He shrugged. "I guess I have a couple people I hang with, but their not nearly as fun as you."

She grinned. "Any girlfriends?"

He blinked. "A couple."

She pursed her brow. "Right now?"

"No, my whole life. One here for a month, one there for a week; that's about it."

"Do you remember their names?"

He shook his head, his lower lip pouting slightly. "They weren't that important, or rather, they didn't find _me_ that important."

"As in they didn't want to talk? They'd rather…" She paused, and made a motion with her head.

"Basically, yah."

She sighed and looked back up at the sky. It was kind of a weird subject, but she didn't feel as uncomfortable as she thought she would. He obviously didn't feel awkward either, because his hand was not tense, and his thumb had begun to stroke hers.

The ends of her eyebrows dipped in. She felt forlorn. To be frank, she felt bad, that nobody liked him for who he was.

"I like you for who you are," she told herself, but somehow the words escaped her lips and were audible. It pierced the chilly night air like a sword, and she was glad that she wasn't facing him.

She felt the beginnings of hot, curdling blood crawl up her neck and seep into her cheeks.

She never said anything like that to a boy before, and mean it in more ways than one.

"I like you for who you are too."

Now she really felt red; her cheeks burned as blood rushed into them with a sudden surge as his words reached her eardrum.

"Don't be embarrassed," he murmured.

Dana didn't have to see Mulder to know he was smiling. She could hear it in his voice and feel it through his hand and breath.

She relaxed a little. He was just being honest after all.

"Is that another one where you just 'call them as you see them'?"

"No, I've known it for a while."

She giggled slightly. "We've only known each other for four days."

"Really? Seems longer than that."

"Kinda."

She still wasn't looking at him, but she knew he was looking at her; studying her.

She wondered what he was thinking, not knowing he was having a war that existed only in his head.

She finally faced him. "Is there one more thing you want to ask me?"

He scanned her eyes. "I know I shouldn't."

"Shouldn't what?"

His face was so soft, his eyes so powerful. She felt weak and strong at the same time.

_She's so innocent, feral. I don't want to lose her; or worse, hurt her._

But he simply couldn't help himself.

"Dana?"

"Yes?"

"Can I kiss you?"

XXX

Author's Note: Sorry for the long wait…and the cliffhanger…and if you've never seen _West Side Story. _If you haven't, then you probably looked at the chapter title and said, 'WTF?', but, to clear things up, Tony and Maria were the young lovers in the movie, and they were part of different racial gangs (in the 60's. Yikes!). They fell in love at first sight (like Romeo and Juliet), and some stuff happens and Bernardo (Maria's brother) ends up killing Riff (Tony's best friend) and Tony kills Bernardo :(. Tony is later shot and killed by a rivalry gang member when he and Maria try to run away together :( :( (yes, that deserves a double frowny face). Now, this does NOT mean that this is going to happen in my story. I'm just relating Mulder and Scully to Maria and Tony b/c they come from different worlds and only just met each other. I will try and update soon, I've been having a little writers' block on this story, but I hope I'll get a brain spark and be able to give you guys another chapter. Thanks to all who are reading this story. I've received a lot of emails saying they have added this story as a favorite or as a chapter/story alert. I luv you bunches! Thank you and please review.


	9. With Invitations there are Always Notes

Title: And Then there were Tears

Title: And Then there were Tears

Rating: PG to PG-13. Basic teen stuff, like suggestiveness, but this does have adult material. Not for young children. (BTW, this is an alternate universe.)

Disclaimer: I did not create Mulder and Scully. I just play around with them a bit.

Feedback: For this chapter, I **DEFINATLY**want some!!

Author's note: At the end

**Chapter 9: With Invitations there are Always Notes **

_ "Dana?"_

_"Yes?"_

_"Can I kiss you?"_

XXX

The funny thing was, Dana wasn't scared at all. Sure, there was that first, gut-reaction to get up and run away, like when you get that dreaded math test placed in front of you, or when you're forced to take the training wheels off your bike and you drag it out to the street and shakily mount it.

There's always that chance to fake sick and leave the classroom, or dismount the bike and scream 'I can't do this!', but you would never learn that way. Would you?

Everyone who sucks at something or are too afraid to learn always wish they were somebody else; somebody who excelled.

But wishing never got anybody anywhere. You can't live your life having people tell you how great something is. Sometimes, you just have to pick up that pencil, or kick off from that pavement, and find out for yourself. And, nine and a half times out of ten, the experience is better than you could ever have dreamed.

There were a million things Dana wanted to say, but she found it hard to speak. She knew this would be her first kiss, but it didn't feel that way. Not that the mood was casual. She felt like they had somehow kissed before. Maybe not physically, but…she couldn't describe it. The mood was surreal; completely odd and perverse, but calming, familiar.

She simply nodded.

At first, Mulder did nothing. He wanted to be certain that she had time to change her mind, and he was still unsure that it was a good idea to ask her in the first place. Not that he would have planted one on her spontaneously. He wanted it to be…special. And he never felt that way about anyone.

Before, a kiss was just a prelude to…well…the grander deed. But not with her, and not because she was a baby. She was different, like a china doll: he didn't want to break her. Not that she was his, but that she was her own.

He decided not to wait anymore, and turned his body onto his side.

She did the same, keeping her hand entwined with his.

As his face leaned close to hers, he noticed her eyes. They sparkled with reflecting moonlight. They were a watery blue-green color, eerily complimenting her pale skin and flaming red curls.

He smiled slightly, and let his lids slowly slip shut.

He moved the rest of the way and placed his lips to hers.

If there were any onlookers, they would have described the closed-lipped kiss as simple, moot, even lame. But they would have been ignorant, for the kiss was more powerful then all five senses could capture.

Suddenly, the clouds decided to break open and gushed water a tops their boat.

Feeling the heavy rain hit them, they broke apart and sat up.

"Oh!" Mulder exclaimed with laughter, facing the heavens, his eyes squinting against the pounding rain. "That's cold!"

Dana laughed in response, then lay flat on her back, accepting the water as it drenched the length of her body.

"Feels good!"

"How's that?" Mulder asked, looking at her.

"You've never just laid out in the rain?"

He shook his head.

She smiled. "Bill and Melissa locked me and Charlie out of the house once when there was a down pour."

"Who's Charlie?"

"My younger brother. He gets picked on too. We had to spend the whole afternoon outside, so we just laid there in the grass 'til Mom came home. We looked like drowned rats!" She laughed again. "I always liked the rain since."

Mulder chuckled. "We can play in the rain later. Come on, help me with the anchor. I got to get you home."

She nodded and he stood up, pulling her with him because he didn't let go of her hand.

XXX

It was a little after eleven and the sky had completely darkened by the time 'The Jet' finally docked. Mulder secured the boat to the deck and they ran all the way home, the rain still coming down hard.

"Your uncle's gonna kill me," Mulder said as they neared Aram's house.

"No, he knows we needed the time alone, and he probably suspected we'd be out this late. And if he does come down on you, I'm sure it won't be _too _hard."

He giggled at his expression and they arrived at the front door.

"Think I should come in?"

She glanced around. "Naw, there's no lights on, he's asleep. You can come by tomorrow to apologize to him."

"Is that an excuse for an invitation to see me again?"

She cocked her head. "Maybe."

He put on his classic, crooked, toothy grin and extended his hand. Not for a handshake; he simply moved his hand towards hers to touch. His fingers grazed hers, asking for her consent.

She complied and opened her hand to let his slid in.

She thought it was funny; their hands were wet and his fingers slid smoothly as he adjusted and readjusted them, but only making the slightest of movements. She liked his gentle examining of her hand. It made an ordinary contact…extraordinary.

"Well, I accept you invitation that's not an invitation."

She laughed and they studied each other's eyes for a moment. Neither had seen the other so happy and beautiful.

"See you tomorrow, Dana," Mulder murmured, squeezing her hand.

"See you tomorrow, friend Mulder."

He held her hand for a long moment, his gaze not straying from hers, then he slowly, gently, removed his hand from her grasp. His fingers made soft, light paths across hers as they slipped away, and finally left.

He then stepped back some, slowly turned his back to her and walked away, shoving his hands in his pockets.

Dana stood there, watching him. As he was about to turn the corner, he turned around and waved. She waved back, and he disappeared around the bend.

She entered the house quietly. She sat on the couch and started to unlace her shoes. She did this slowly, for her mind was elsewhere.

The kiss was so perfect, so gentle, so trusting. She knew in her heart that Mulder was the right boy to share her first kiss with. She remembered when Melissa told her of her first kiss. She was twelve, in the seventh grade, and a boy who she didn't really even like led her to the locker room between bells and they had a make out session.

She laughed. Her first kiss was almost that of a fairytale; lying side by side on the deck of a ship, holding hands, having a soft, close-lipped kiss, and having the rain pouring out of a darkening sky pull the two of you apart. And the laughter afterwards.

She wanted to brag this to her sister, but decided against it. This was something between her and Mulder, and it should stay that way; secret and special.

As she made her way towards the stairs, she spied a note on the dining room table.

She picked it up and read it.

_Dana (and Fox if you are with her),_

_I got a call from your family today, Dana. They have given me delightful news; your father is home from his station in England on special relieve! He wants to see you immediately, and hopes you come home soon. He misses you, and is only staying for three weeks. He is sending money for a flight and expects to see you by July 4th. I know you have other priorities now, but I'm sure you want to see him as much as he wants to see you. You and I can discuss it in the morning. Fox, if you are reading this, I know you're taking care of Dana. I don't plan on loosing my respect for you, just know that I will keep my guard up. I'm sure you understand why._

_ Aram_

Dana did not know whether to laugh or cry.

XXX

Author's Note: Oh oh, what happens now? Well, you need to tell me you want another chapter to find out. Thanks for reading!


	10. Suds and Sunday Mournings

Title: And Then there were Tears

Title: And Then there were Tears

Rating: PG to PG-13. Basic teen stuff, like suggestiveness, but this does have adult material. Not for young children. (BTW, this is an alternate universe.)

**Disclaimer: I did not create the poem in this story. It was written by Robert Louis Stevenson, so don't sue me 'cuz I'm just barrowing it. I did not create Mulder and Scully either. I only barrowed them too. **

Feedback: I want some always!

Author's note: At the end

**Chapter 10: Suds and Sunday Mournings**

Dana awoke and took in a deep breath, looking at the time; 7:08.

Then she remembered the note from last night and sat up with a start.

_It's Sunday. No mail on Sunday._

She collapsed back down on the bed, having some pillows tumble off from the sudden dip in the mattress.

"It's Sunday," she muttered aloud, closing her eyes and trying to relax her racing heart.

She felt bad for not wanting to leave right away. She missed Ahab terribly, and he was already home and waiting for her, and he wasn't going to stay long.

But she didn't want to leave Mulder either. She didn't want to call it a relationship, because that was an awful stereotype that she viewed as her sister viewed it; a couple who simply had sex. This was a friendship, a strong one built on trust. But she'd never kissed a friend on the lips before, let alone anywhere else. She didn't know what to call it, other than special. And she knew that she didn't want to leave.

She got up and crept out of her room, making her way towards the bathroom to take a quick shower before anyone woke up.

Having finished her shower after about fifteen minutes, she returned to her room and threw some clothes on. She poured a little bit of oil in her hair and combed it out.

_Tap._

She looked around, but decided it was just the furnace or something.

_Tap._

She heard it again. It sounded like…

_Tap Tap Tap._

Yep. It was stone against glass. She walked over to her window and crawled up on the chest, curling her legs up under her. She opened the window just as another pebble came flying up and missed her face by less than an inch.

"Oh, sorry Dana."

She looked down to see Mulder standing in the front yard.

"What are you doing here?" she called.

"I don't know. I had nothing else better to do so I decided to see what you were up to."

"Well, it's not even 7:30, friend Mulder."

"But I obviously didn't wake you, as it seems you've just got out of the shower, or you never dried off from last night."

She smiled and let out a delighted snort. "You'd be correct on the first assumption."

He shrugged. "Well, either way, your hair looks good when it's wet."

She raised an eyebrow, but could feel heat rise up her neck and press against her cheeks. "How do you mean?"

He stared at her, or rather studied her. "Um…it's dark and straight and shimmers…why are you blushing?"

He smiled his crooked smile and she giggled.

"My uncle's going to kill you if he finds out that you're here."

He shoved his hands in his pockets. "Well, he's going to have to kill me then, if he finds out."

She sighed. "I've gotta tell you something, Mulder."

His smile dimmed slightly. "What?"

"I'm coming down."

He pursed his brow. "Why?"

"This is important and I need to tell you face to face."

"Dana…"

"Just hold on; I'll be right down."

She shut her window and walked over to her mirror, putting her brown eyeliner on and running her comb through her hair one last time. Then she grabbed the coat he had loaned to her and threw it over her shoulders and sneaked out of her room and down the stairs. She shoved her shoes on and walked out of the house.

"I see you prefer my jacket to your own," he said, smiling meekly as she approached him. "Why did you put that on?"

"It's heavier than my sweater and…"

"No. This." He lifted his hand to her face and cupped her cheek, lightly brushing his thumb up under her eye. He didn't wipe the makeup off, but was simply referring to it.

She looked down, forcing him to remove his hand from her.

"I thought…I didn't think that…" She couldn't finish. She studied her feet, noticing how small they were compared to his.

She felt his fingers find their way under her chin and gently lift her head to meet his gaze.

"I appreciate the gesture, but you don't have try and make yourself look pretty for me, or for anybody. I like you for who _you _are, Dana, not the makeup you think you need to hide behind."

She scanned his eyes. They were dark and full of…

"Besides, you looked beautiful before you put that stuff on." His full-fledged smile returned and she felt herself blushing again, her eyes watering slightly.

"It's okay," he murmured, bringing his thumb up to caress her cheek. "Don't cry."

She sniffed in the air, surprised to find it not cold and biting, but warm and smooth. Of course, his face was close to hers, so she was breathing in his breath.

"It's just…no one's ever said anything like that to me before." She leaned into his thumb, and he moved his hand to cup her face the right way, still moving his thumb delicately across her flesh.

She realized that this was the first time his hand had ever touched her face, but it felt so normal, like an every day gesture, and she felt comfortable as such.

"What did you want to tell me?" he whispered.

"Oh," she sighed, keeping his gaze. "Aram got a call from my father and found out that he's back home from England on special shore leave."

"Well that's great…isn't it?" He added the last bit when her face didn't lighten up.

"He's only staying for a couple of weeks and he wants me home as soon as possible. He's sending money for a plane ticket and it will probably be here by tomorrow or the next day."

"So you'll be leaving soon?"

She nodded.

He lowered his eyes and removed his hand from her face. For a moment she felt the sensation of loss, but then felt his fingers slowly lace through hers.

"I feel…glad that you'll miss me, Dana, but you need to see this as a good thing. He's your father, and he obviously loves you and misses you very much. I wouldn't be surprised if you're his favorite. But you need to be happy about this, and when you go home and jump into his arms, you'll probably forget all about me anyway." He looked up and met her eyes with such caring ones.

She laughed. "I could never forget you, friend Mulder." She tentatively brought her free hand up to his face and gently rested it on his cheek. She had touched his face before, when she had wiped his tears away a couple nights ago, but this was different.

His cheek was cool against her warm hand, and she softly petted his scratchy stubble. It was not the face of a boy, but of a man, and she felt as if she were a child and an adult at the same time. It was an odd feeling, touching a face that wasn't her father's, and she half wanted to pull away because of the foreignness. But the other half told her to remain.

She kept her hand on his cheek and wondered if he felt the same way she did when he touched her face. He must have because he leaned into her touch.

"We should go do something today," he murmured.

"Yah, but I think Aram has something planned for us all to do together."

"That's fine with me, and probably even more fine for your uncle."

She smiled. "Why don't you come inside?"

"Won't Aram be mad? It's kinda early."

"I think he would be happier if he saw us spending time together out in the open."

His lower lip pouted slightly, considering.

She slipped her hand from his face, entwining it with his other hand. "Come on. I'll make breakfast."

"Dana, you don't have to do that for me."

She smirked. "Who said I was making it for you?"

He raised his eyebrows.

She laughed. "I'll make some for all of us. I know Aram will wake from the deepest of sleeps if he smells pancakes." She tugged on his hands and he obliged, walking with her towards her house.

XXX

Aram had been awake for awhile, slowly pacing across his bedroom carpet. He had been thinking of his daughters, his niece, and his wife when he happened to glance out the window and spot Fox Mulder approaching his house, treading through the mist and across the dew covered earth.

He stopped pacing and stood by the window and watched as the boy went to the driveway and scooped up several pebbles, walking through the lawn and stopping under Dana's window.

He was tempted to shout to him, tell him it was early and the last thing he should be doing is throwing stones at girls' windows. But it wasn't just any girl; it was his niece, his niece who wasn't so little anymore.

As the first pebble struck the pane, he wondered what had happened on the boat yesterday, wondering how far they really went.

He knew pressing either of them wasn't going to get him anywhere, so he decided to sit back and watch the scene unfold before him.

He couldn't hear them, but could see their facial expressions. She appeared to be a little embarrassed, he somewhat shy. It looked like a friendship that just took the next step. He didn't know if that made him more relieved or uncomfortable.

Then he saw her close her window and shortly emerge from the front door, approaching him and standing so close to him that the tips of their shoes almost touched.

He thought they were going to kiss, but they didn't. They merely talked and touched each others' face, holding hands. He guessed that she told him that she would be leaving soon.

As he watched them, with their soft caresses and tender looks, he felt…his heart melted. They were so respectable of one another, and he was feeling more trustful of Fox Mulder than he already was. He knew that he had nothing to worry about.

He smiled as he watched them enter the house, knowing that Dana just wanted him to feel accepted by not just her, but her family. Or at least this part of it.

He contemplated whether or not to go downstairs, but found himself exiting his room when the smell of cooking pancakes reached his nose.

XXX

Aram had planned for a picnic that day, but another torrential downpour kept them all inside. The girls had woken up to the smell of Dana cooking breakfast and after they had all finished stuffing themselves with pancakes and syrup, Leslie said her second word.

"_Monopoly_."

They all laughed and clapped and Aram hugged his daughter.

"She hadn't spoken all day yesterday except for that word to you, Fox," Aram said, nodding in the younger man's direction.

"I want to play _Monopoly _too!" Madelynn squealed.

"Okay," their father laughed, as if on the verge of joyous tears. "But I think we should read one more of mom's poems first, alright?"

The girls nodded.

"Okay, everyone in the living room," Aram said, going upstairs.

The girls rushed into the living room and crawled up on the couch, looking out the window and watching the rain.

Dana started to pick up the dishes and Mulder helped her.

"Are you going to be okay listening?" she asked, plugging the sink and running the hot water.

"Yah, I'll be fine. I've heard them all before. Not only was she was a beautiful poetess, but she could read her poems with such emphasis, when she could still speak with strength." He placed his stack of dishes in the sink.

"I wish I could have met her." She poured the dish soap in.

"This might sound a little weird, but your pancakes were really good."

She looked at him and smiled. "It's not weird at all. Although I'm a tomboy, I'm usually the one helping my mother in the kitchen. Melissa's too lazy and Bill thinks because he's a 'man' he never has to step foot in the kitchen. Charlie tries, but he always ends up burning something. So, it ends up just being my mom and me. It's the only thing we do together."

"How do you mean?" Mulder asked, picking up a sponge and a dirty glass.

She shrugged. "My mom and I don't really connect. We have nothing in common. She told me that she was just like Missy when she was younger, but she doesn't know everything my sister does. She takes her and Bill's side on _everything_, which is why she thinks Charlie and me are the brats. Melissa's the liar and Bill just backs up everything she says."

"So you're saying that you and your mom don't do anything together because she doesn't trust you?"

"Not exactly. Mom likes to shop; I don't. That's something she and Melissa do. Mom likes to watch Football; I don't. She watched Bill play when he was still in high school and they watch professional on TV."

"You don't like football? I thought you said you were a tomboy."

"I play street baseball and I'm on my school's soccer team."

"Soccer?"

"My team placed second in state last year. It's not a dainty game, let me tell you. We had two girls break their ankles and one ruptured her knee."

"And nothing's happened to you?"

She rinsed of a scrubbed plate and dried it. "I think I broke enough bones to cover me 'til senior year."

He nodded. "So it's just you and your brother that spend time?"

"And my dad."

He dried a dish and placed in on the counter, looking out the window into the unforgiving rain. "If this rain ever lets up maybe we could play a little one on one basketball before you have to leave. You any good at that?"

"I guess you're going to have to find out."

He looked at her to see her smiling. Not being able to help himself, he picked up some suds with his fingers and wiped them on her nose.

"Mulder!" she laughed, wiping it off, "this is no time for a suds fight!" She then picked up a handful herself and plastered it on his chin.

"Oh, no you don't!" He filled his hand with the foamy soap and caked her ear.

She shrieked and threw some at his nose.

"Oh! I think you got some in my mouth!" he complained whilst chuckling as he pasted some on her forehead.

She was giggling as she tried to push his hand away.

"Okay, kids, that's enough."

They turned to see Aram folding his arms, holding a notebook in his hand. He was trying hard to sound stern, but a smile teased the sides of his mouth.

"I don't want you giving my daughters any ideas. Now clean up and get into the living room."

Dana could have sworn he winked at them before turning and leaving the room.

They looked at each other and laughed. Dana grabbed the towel and cleaned her face. Having finished, she tossed it to him and he did likewise.

"You missed a spot," he said, taking the towel and wiping above her eyebrow.

"Thanks, but because you started it, you get to finish the washing the dishes." She started to walk out of the kitchen.

He followed, throwing the towel on the counter. "Hey, you didn't have to play along."

"If a fight starts, I have to finish it. And I usually win."

"I don't think anybody won that round."

"Either that or we both won."

They smiled at each other as they entered the living room. They sat down on the couch, not quite touching, but close.

"Okay, now that everybody's here, let's all get comfortable, but not _too _comfortable." He eyed the two teenagers jokingly.

"Fox, I'm not sure what poems are in this one; I simply picked it out of the pile because it's her favorite color. So can you look through it and read one that, well, was one of her happy ones?"

Dana glanced at Mulder. She hadn't thought that he would be reading them, and neither did he. But he seemed at least somewhat comfortable with it, a rose to retrieve the notebook from her uncle.

He sat back down and opened it with great care, softly and slowly turning the pages as he scanned them with gentle eyes.

"It's a good thing she wrote in pen," he stated, not to anyone in particular. "I convinced that I liked her pen work better than her pencil work, but really I just never wanted the words to fade."

He stopped on a page and stared at it for a time, then cleared his throat and read it.

_"March 7, 1975_

_Nest Eggs_

_Birds all the sunny day_

_Flutter and quarrel_

_Here in the arbor-like_

_Tent of the laurel._

_Here in the fork_

_ The brown nest is seated;_

_Four little blue eggs_

_ The mother keeps heated._

_While I stand watching her,_

_Staring like gabies,_

_Safe in each egg are the_

_Birds little babies._

_Soon the frail eggs they shall_

_Chip, and unspringing_

_Make all the April woods_

_Merry with singing._

_Younger than we are,_

_ O children, and frailer,_

_Soon in the blue air they'll be_

_Singer and sailor._

_We, so much older,_

_Taller and stronger,_

_We shall look down on the_

_Birdies no longer._

_They shall go flying_

_With musical speeches_

_High overhead in the_

_Tops of the beeches._

_In spite of our wisdom_

_And sensible talking,_

_We on our feet must go_

_Plodding and walking."_

Mulder finished, but didn't look up from the page. Dana knew that he was staring at nothing, but going somewhere, back in time.

He smiled slightly. "She wrote this the day she found a bird building a nest on a ledge outside of her window. She would look out every day to see how far it progressed. She said that on the day it finished the nest, it had laid three little eggs. The nest was so close you could watch the bird tending them. Not having much else to do, we would sit and watch the bird, her and I. The bird was completely unafraid of us, and she said that most birds feared people, especially females that had babies. But she said that they can sense a person's disposition, and that it must have liked ours and therefore was content with us.

"On April 14, she called me from my room and we went to hers. The eggs were hatching and we watched with wonder and joy as their tiny, featherless bodies emerged from the eggs. They chirped and the mother flew away to get them food. She brought back bees in which she fed to them lovingly.

"For the next couple of weeks, we watched the babies grow, growing feathers and strong legs and big, now open eyes.

"She liked their eyes the best because she said that they said something, and when you looked into them you knew they were thinking, possibly about you.

"As the birds grew bigger and bigger, the mother left them. She could not take care of them forever for she had to go and find a mate. The first day, the birds stuck their tiny heads out of the entrance of the nest and called and called for her, but she did not come. They stayed in the nest that night and were hungry.

The next day, at sunrise, we watched the strongest of the three perch itself on the edge of the nest, scanning the countryside, spreading its wings. Lidia said that she couldn't wait to leave the hospital like that bird couldn't wait to leave its home. Finally, it jumped and went soaring to the nearest tree, its siblings watching with despair, for they were not ready yet. They hopelessly called out to their mother, but they knew now that she wasn't coming back.

"That evening, the second bird took the chance and leaped into the air, flailing its wings. It was lucky and made it to the nearby tree. I was not there, but Lidia told me the next morning what had happened, and that she was afraid for the bird that remained in the nest. The bird still chirped for its mother, and we knew that it was still not ready and would soon starve. That afternoon, when we were in her room eating together, which we often did, she saw the bird clumsily climb out of the nest entrance, standing on the edge, shaking. We became afraid and hoped that the bird would not jump, but it did, with its weak wings were not strong enough to support it. We watched it fall down down down, until it hit the ground and was dead.

"We were silent for a time, retreating from the window and sitting next to each other on the bed, no longer able to eat. She then spoke up and said that some make it, some don't, and some think they can but do not. I knew she wasn't referring to the dead bird, but to herself. I said nothing, hoping that she wouldn't turn out to be the bird that jumped and fell."

Dana looked at Mulder, watching his eyes mist over. She had to pull him back, so she reached out and grabbed his hand. He slowly slipped back into the present and turned to face her.

"She wasn't that bird, Mulder. You saw to that," she whispered.

He smiled sadly and squeezed her hand.

They both looked over at Aram, who had both girls in his lap. His eyes were watery, while the twins' were large and full of awe.

"She's right, Fox," Aram said, wiping his eyes. "She's right."

"What kind of bird was it?" Madelynn asked.

"I don't know," Mulder replied. "We never found out."

"Mommy always liked birds," Leslie said.

Aram kissed his daughters. "Okay, who wants to go get the _Monopoly_ board?"

"Me!" the girls shouted, raising their hands.

"Alright, I'll put mommy's notebook away and we'll go get it." He got up, holding his girls hands.

Mulder handed the book to Leslie and the three of them went upstairs.

"You okay, Mulder?" Dana asked, still holding his hand.

"Yah, I just miss her. She was the nicest person I've ever met."

She took her free hand and ran it briefly through his hair. It was soft and somewhat thick. Liking the way it felt, she ran her fingers through it again, slowly this time, knowing she was going to miss feeling its texture when she left.

He sighed and let his lids close, relaxing at her touch, and he weaved his fingers in tighter with hers, extending them and closing them in rhythm, as if to a heartbeat.

She ran her hand though his hair one more time, then let her palm slide tenderly down his cheek, resting there momentarily, then leaving his face.

He opened his eyes and turned his head to face her, smiling contently.

She smiled back, thinking that he looked even cuter with his hair ruffled. She felt tired, as if she could fall asleep right there with him holding her hand and gazing upon her with his deep hazel eyes.

"I'm gonna be sad when you go," he murmured, obviously feeling sleepy too because his lids slid halfway shut.

"I know," she replied.

The phone rang.

She squeezed his hand and released it, getting up from the couch and walking over to the phone.

She picked it up. "Hello?"

"Dana! Oh my God, you won't believe what happened!"

"Charlie?"

XXX

Author's Note: Thanks for reading! I hope you liked this kinda longish chapter. I always leave them with a cliffhanger lately, don't I? This chapter is happy and sad, I know. No, I didn't spell it wrong, the title is an analogy, since this chapter takes place on Sunday morning and some sad things happen. Please review. Thanks!


	11. Of That which Beats

Title: And Then there were Tears

Rating: (Ponders) uuuuuuummmmmmmmm…maybe PG-13 for this chapter. This is the mind of a fifteen year old girl, remember?

Author's note: At the end

**Chapter 11: Of That which Beats**

_She picked it up. "Hello?"_

"_Dana! Oh my God, you won't believe what happened!"_

"_Charlie?"_

XXX

"Sorry, I would have called earlier, but I'm just now home alone and they would have killed me if they knew I was calling you 'cuz it's…"

"Charlie, you're rambling. Just tell me what happened."

He sighed, trying to steady himself. "Okay, a couple days ago, before dad got home, well when dad got home…anyway, me, Bill and Mom got in the car to go to the ocean, and Melissa stayed home to do a '4-H project'."

Dana could hear the sarcasm in the last two words. She knew exactly that Melissa did something, or rather someone, else other than 4-H.

"So…okay, then what?"

"Well, dad came home that day. We really went to the airport to pick him up, not the ocean. Mom wanted it to be a surprise. Melissa had no clue and she thought we were going to be out all day...so we came home and…"

Dana's eyes widened. "You're kidding me."

"Nope."

"What happened?"

"We all came home and mom went up to Melissa's room to find her trying to quickly dress herself and Jared Hicks hiding in her closet."

"Oh my God! Serves her right, though. Mom always thought she was the 'good girl', when she really hasn't been a virgin since she was 13. I was just waiting for the day when mom was gonna catch her."

"True, maybe mom'll take us for our word for a change. Now do you see why Dad wants you home so bad?"

"I can't wait to see him, now that he won't give Missy any attention, except for one-on-one lectures." She snickered after that.

"She's had half a dozen already."

"Why did you wait to call me now?"

"Everybody went to church, but I stayed home claiming sick."

"You always were good at that. I could never pull it off." She heard Mulder approach her.

"Who's on the phone?" he asked, standing next to her.

"My brother, Charlie."

"What?" Charlie asked.

"I'm talking to Mulder. He's the guy I told you about."

"Oh, so know you're telling people about me?" Mulder chided, smiling.

"Mulder…"

"Is he nice? Are you guys friends?" Charlie asked.

"No, he's mean and he beats people up," she replied with stern sarcasm.

She could feel her brother roll her eyes. "You are just a barrel of laughs, Dana."

She giggled. "We're friends, Charlie. Why do you care so much?" She felt Mulder nudge her shoulder. She looked at him and he mouthed something.

_'Just friends?'_

She wondered why it was so important for him not to say it aloud.

"Just wondering," Charlie answered, obviously trying to put two and two together.

She heard footsteps and turned to see Aram and the twins coming down the stairs, Leslie carrying the _Monopoly_ board.

"I got to go, Charlie."

"Alright. I can't wait until you come home."

She didn't know how to respond to that. She could not agree or disagree.

"Bye."

"Bye, sis."

She hung up and she and Mulder went into the living room to join the rest of the family.

XXX

By late afternoon, the game had been finished, with Madelynn owning all of the properties. The rain had ceased, and Aram decided to take them all out to eat.

"I hope you're all in the mood for pizza," he chided as he pulled on his coat.

The girls looked up at their father and gasped. "Teddy's?!" they cried simultaneously.

He smiled and nodded, kneeling down to help Leslie with her jacket zipper.

Dana said nothing. She was afraid to go out into public, but not for herself; she was afraid for Mulder. Knowing he was a town outcast, she didn't know how he would do in public in a family setting.

"'Teddy's'? I never heard of it," Mulder said.

"It's not actually called 'Teddy's', but that's what I call it because my friend owns it. We've known each other since we were kids. He was my best man at my wedding."

Nobody said anything as he grabbed his car keys and turned off the lights.

"Okay, let's hit the road," he declared, and they all pooled out of the house.

"Can we ride in the bed, Daddy?" Madelynn pleaded.

"Well…"

"Please!"

"Oh, alright, but one of the big kids has to ride with you." He eyed the teenagers.

Dana and Mulder glanced at each other, then back to Aram, not moving from where they stood.

"That's what I thought. Okay, everybody in the bed, and no standing! I want you on your butt at all times, or I'll turn right around and you'll go to bed with no dinner." Of course he was directing this at the twins, but he pointed at the teens as he said this, making the girls laugh.

He got into the driver's side and Mulder went over to the tailgate lowered it, lifting the girls in one by one.

"You two choose a spot to sit down and you stay there for the whole time, 'kay?" Mulder said.

The girls nodded and sat side by side on the left side of the bed, sitting cross-legged.

"Need a leg up?" Mulder asked Dana as she approached the truck.

She looked at him, squinting her eyes and pursing her lips. She grabbed the tailgate with both hands, lifting herself into the bed, taking her seat on a tire in the far end.

"Should have known," he muttered, getting in himself and shutting the tailgate. He sat on the tire next to Dana, checked to make sure the twins were comfortable, then gave the thumbs up to Aram.

They drove off into the now sunny and warm air.

XXX

The girls watched with wonder at the things that passed by. They were tiny, so only their noses peaked over the side over the truck, but they pointed to dogs and waved to people and laughed at things they must have found terribly funny.

Dana looked around too, loving the town she thought was beautiful, but she was really watching Mulder. He sat passively next to her, staring straight ahead (or straight back, for he was in a truck) with his hands gripping the sides of the tire of which he sat. Not the death grip, but his fingers weren't moving like usual. His eyes were squinting slightly, and he had his sad smile on.

She wondered what he was thinking.

"The air is so fresh after a good rain," Dana quibbled.

"Yeah, if you like the smell of fish," he chuckled, shifting slightly.

There was a short pause.

"Are you gonna be okay?" she asked softly.

"With what?"

"You know, eating out with us."

He shrugged. "I guess. Your uncle wanted me to come, so I guess it's okay."

She felt awkward asking, but found herself doing so anyway. "Will people stare?" She asked it so quietly he almost didn't catch it.

He laughed, hard and loud, and her lips parted in confusion.

"You say it like I'm some sort of celebrity who they just found out was gay! I don't get stares, Dana. I'm just avoided. There're a thousand rumors that go around about my sister's disappearance, and my…" He stopped, eyeing the girls. "…well, and me with my _personal _record, it makes people scared of me and…"

"…what you might do?" she finished.

He nodded.

"They think you…" she lowered her voice and leaned in close to his face. "…that you hurt your sister?"

He didn't back away, keeping his face about an inch away from hers. She inhaled his breath as she stared into his eyes as he searched hers.

They were so green, a greenish hazel that made her continue to gaze into them. She wondered why his eyes changed their color so much, and if they reflected what he felt inside.

"They think a lot of things, Dana. They hear a few tidbits and make an assumption, taking it as the God's-honest truth. But ignorance and people go hand in hand, and for the longest of times I thought you couldn't have one without the other."

She backed away slightly. His voice was steady and intense, and she thought he was angry.

She watched his irises fade to a grey hazel, and he swallowed before he said:

"But that was before I met you, and before you proved me wrong."

She smiled and scooted closer to him. They now sat as close as two people could sit next to each other. Their legs rested plastered together, along with their feet. Their hands entwined a tops their pieced-together legs, and they leaned their heads in to rest upon the other.

"Thanks," she whispered, letting out a sigh, appreciating the closeness.

He snorted in jest, and she could _feel _him smile, his big, toothy, crooked smile that she was beginning to love.

"You need to learn to not say either 'sorry' or 'thanks' after someone says something to you."

"Sorr-," she began to say, then laughed and turned to look at him.

"Maybe I do need to work on that," she said, soaking up his smiling face and returning one herself.

Leslie and Madelynn kept sneaking glances at the couple, wondering.

Madelynn cupped her hands around Leslie's ear and leaned in. "What are they talking about?" she asked, whispering harshly.

Leslie drew back and had her sister turn her head, placing her hands around her ear in the same fashion, whispering, "I don't know. Maybe they're gonna kiss."

They giggled and watched the trees go by.

"Love birds," they said aloud, not intending for the 'bigger kids' to hear them.

But the words were spoken loud enough and Dana and Mulder could have heard them, but the world had melted away for them and all there was was them, and sharing that long moment simply together and inseparable.

XXX

The party got back to the house around 7:30, full with pepperoni and cheerful from a splendid evening of conversation over dinner. The girls were wound up, but their father made them get ready for bed anyway.

As the girls went upstairs to put on their pajamas, Mulder and Dana finished up the remainder of the dirty dishes, then went to the living room to join Aram.

He was sitting casually on the recliner chair, reading the newspaper with his glasses on. He appeared particularly engrossed in whatever article he was reading, but the teens simply sat on the couch, each reserving an entire cushion to ones' self.

Sighing, Aram leaned forward, folding the paper and taking his glasses off, setting them on the table next to him. He rubbed his eyes slightly, and repressed a smile, one of which Dana and Mulder were unaware was threatening to peak through.

"I'm gonna go and make some coffee. Would you like some?" He asked, nodding in Mulder's direction.

"Yes, thank you."

He got up and left the room, allowing them to scoot closer to one another. They weren't touching, but now if Dana would have moved her knee the slightest to the right, it would have collided with Mulder's.

Dana thought it was weird, weird that she could feel more comfortable closer to someone than further away. She liked alone time, even away from Charlie, but now she'd didn't want to even think of going on that plane home. She had fallen into this comfort zone around Mulder, something of which she never known before, and wondered what life would be like without it, now that she had experienced it.

"Why didn't Aram ask you for coffee?" Mulder asked, turning to face her. Their faces were close, and she could feel his warm breath wash over her lips and neck.

She studied his face, liking it being close to hers. She only took a half a second to observe his nose, his chin, his hair, his lips, finally settling on his eyes. She decided she could look upon his face until the end of time.

"I don't like it. I told him so a few days ago. He thinks I'm nuts."

"I'll second him on that. I never met somebody who didn't like coffee; anybody other than a kid, that is. Are there any other oddities about you."

She stared at him. 'Anybody other than a kid…' He didn't consider her a kid, and it was nice. Teachers and adults always thought of her as mature, but kids her age thought she was a baby; she was a book girl, who didn't go out on the weekends and didn't have a boyfriend. But Mulder had thought her a graduate when he first met her. Someone who was even older than him! She liked being viewed as an equal, and liked Mulder for being the first to notice that.

"Well, nothing beats a good mud bath."

He threw his head back and laughed, and she couldn't help but giggle herself. Everything Mulder did was infectious; when he cried, when he laughed, even when he was simply placid. Every bit of his emotions rubbed off on her.

"Really?" he stuttered, wheezing from his sore vocal cords.

"Really. Not only lying in the rain is what I call fun; it's the rolling in the mud afterward that's the real joy of a good rain. And mud fights with your little brother are an added bonus."

Sighing, he put his face in his hands, rubbing slightly, as if he could wipe the laughter off.

It didn't work, because when he looked up, his eyes were moist and sparkling, his crooked grin taking up half his face.

The girls came parading down the stairs and into the kitchen. Dana could hear them proclaiming that they had brushed their teeth and wanted to be read a story.

"Why don't you ask Dana?" she heard her uncle say. In a matter of two seconds, they were crawling into her lap.

"Story, Cousin Dana! Story!" they chanted.

She sighed and looked over at Mulder who was still smiling.

"Okay, but Mulder's gonna help me, alright?"

They both nodded, squealing victoriously.

"Let's go pick out a book." She lifted the kids off her lap and planted them on the ground, watching them run upstairs. She and Mulder walked side by side, taking their time as they crossed each step. Reaching the room, they found the twins in their beds. Leslie was holding a Dr. Seuss book.

"What do you got there…?" Dana asked, plucking the book from her arms. "_And to Think that I Saw It on Mulberry Street_, ooh, this is a good one."

"It's my favorite," Leslie muttered.

She sat down on the ground and Mulder sat down next to her.

"Friend Mulder, do you want to read the first page?" She handed him the book and he took it from her.

He opened the book as if he never touched a children's story, or hadn't in a long time. He looked upon the girls' eager faces, then back down at the page, clearing his throat slightly. Only slightly, because only Dana could hear it.

"_When I left home to walk to school,_

_Dad always says to me,_

_'Marco, keep your eyelids up_

_And see what you can see.'_"

XXX

The two left the girls tucked in and droopy eyed when they finished the story and left the room. When they got downstairs, Aram handed Mulder a steaming coffee mug.

"It's black; I didn't know what you liked."

"Black's fine," he replied, taking a tentative sip.

"Thanks for reading to my daughters. They've told me how much they've enjoyed it."

"No problem," Dana said.

"Well, I'm getting ready for bed. Today just wore me out."

"Can I run to the store and get a soda?" Dana asked as he started to walk away.

He turned and looked at her, then glanced at the clock on the wall.

"It's after eight," he stated morosely, his face sunken and dry.

She was dumbfounded.

A smile cracked on his face and he chuckled. "I'm just fooling! There's change in my coat pocket. Fox can go with you, but I want you back in fifteen, okay?"

They nodded and he went into his room, shutting the door behind him.

"I'm gonna go upstairs and get my jacket," she said, starting up the steps.

"It's right over there on the rack," he said, pointing at the thin sweater hanging next to the rest.

She smiled. "No. I mean the one you lent to me."

He stared at her and one side of his mouth turned upward into a smirk. "If you keep wearing that thing, I'm gonna have to give it to you."

She rolled her eyes and trotted upstairs. She returned, throwing the coat around her shoulders. She dug a couple quarters out of her uncle's coat pocket, watching Mulder make his way toward the door.

"Let's go," he said opening it for her.

"Wait, what about your coffee?"

"Finished it."

She raised her eyebrows. "And I thought you only ate pizza fast."

He shrugged. "I'm not one for enjoying food."

She walked out the door and he followed her.

"Why?"

He looked down at his feet. "Before my parents got divorced, and before I was hospitalized, the only time we were all together was at the dinner table. I hated the cryptic silence with a few moot comments thrown in, so would just eat as fast as I could so I could go to my room, or Samantha's."

"Which one do you live with?"

He didn't look up. He didn't speak until they were walking on the pavement.

"My dad. He moved out and got a small house, only a couple miles away from mom, actually. My dad's not home a lot, so I live with him, or in his house, rather. I visit my mom during the summer; she has a summer house in Rhode Island that she won during the divorce. I'm just waiting for that call. She seems to like me a little bit more than dad, but, no matter who's house I'm in it's always cold. Except for your uncle's house; it's always warm. And I've never felt that since I was twelve."

He looked up and met her gaze, smiling his sad smile. She edged over and walked even closer to him, if that was possible. They were quiet for a time, just breathing in the air, and Dana could swear that she could hear Mulder's heartbeat, rushing streams of lively blood through his whole body.

_Thump._

_Thump._

_Thump._

Lively. That's the only way she could describe it. She found it odd how his mere heartbeat was like a lullaby to her, soothing her into a surreal, dreamy-like state.

"Look, Dana," he murmured, pointing over to a break in the tree line. She turned her head to see the sun start to set, slipping gently behind the horizon, waving farewell with its streams of pink, red and orange.

"Oh, wow. It's beautiful." As she continued to stare, she felt his hand slowly slip into hers.

She looked at him. Not in bewilderment, but he must have thought so because he started to pull his hand away.

"Sorry. If you don't want to in public…"

"No." she pulled his hand back into her grasp. "I'm glad for the gesture. I want you to hold my hand."

He nodded, but still didn't seem entirely convinced. To reassure him, she rested her head on his shoulder, or rather against his shoulder. She sometimes hated being so short, and this was one of those times.

She pushed that thought aside, however, feeling the vibration of Mulder's sigh on her ear. His arm was warm, and the pumping of his blood was now amplified.

_Whoosh._

_Whoosh._

_Whoosh._

She wanted to lean further into him, but was afraid she'd push him into the road. She remembered when she would lean on her father's shoulder, as they watched TV or sat in a boat on a lake, waiting for fish to bite. She knew what blood sounded like, what a heart sounded like, and how it could make you fall into a pool of complete placidity and safety. But Mulder was different than her father, and those same words meant different feelings all together. She suddenly realized how one word could mean so many different things when you consider different people.

And maybe it wasn't all people. Maybe it was just Mulder.

They passed the playground where they first met and Dana looked across the way to observe it, feeling drawn for some reason. She found Mulder was staring at it too. There were a few children playing in the dusk of the day, becoming muddy from rolling and stomping in the dampened soil.

She looked over to the swing set to see a boy and a girl, probably six or seven, sitting on the same swings as she and Mulder were on. They weren't swinging, just talking.

She smiled at the sight and could feel the rumble in Mulder's body as he spoke.

"What do you think they're talking about?"

She knew who he was referring to.

"Who knows, but I bet she isn't calling him James Bond."

He chuckled, and she felt it come up from deep within him.

They reached the store and she did part with him to get her soda and pay for it. She slipped her hand back into his as they walked out, throwing the cap away and drinking with one hand.

"Wow, you were really thirsty," he commented, watching her suck it down.

She came up for air and threw a look at him. "It's a soda. I crave them all the time, especially since we don't keep it in my house at home. It's a summer drink for me, or a holiday drink."

He nodded and they said nothing for a while. Dana finished the Coke and threw the empty bottle in a nearby trash can.

"Think it's been fifteen minutes yet?" Mulder inquired, looking at the darkening sky.

"I doubt it's been even ten."

"You want to sit for a while?"

She pursed her brow. "Where?"

He pointed towards the playground, which was now empty, the swings hanging lifelessly. It really looked like a graveyard, solemn and deathly silent, the large trees that incased it looming over as if they could swallow the gloom.

"It's awfully dank and dreary; what are we waiting for?" She let go of his hand and half ran, half walked toward the swing set, splashing mud up onto her shoes and pants.

He followed, shoving his hands in his pockets. He sat down next to her on the swing.

"The rain left this place a mess," she said, glancing around. Although it was shadowed and wet, it didn't seem so gloomy when you were inside it. Birds sang and the first of the tree frogs started to chirp, calling for mates.

"Why did you want to sit here?" she asked, turning towards him.

He wasn't looking at her, but at his feet. He shrugged. "I sit here a lot. When you leave, I want to be able to remember you when I sit here. I want to be able to sit here and imagine you're sitting here beside me, just talking and smiling and being my friend."

"Mulder," she whispered, beckoning him. He looked up to see her face, forlorn and yet happy.

"I'm here with you right now; I'm not just a memory yet."

He grinned, bringing his hand up and placing it on her cheek. "No, you're not."

She rested her hand on top of his, and took long blinks, feeling sleepy, but in a good way.

They sat there for what seemed like an age, just taking each other in.

"Dana?" he spoke, the word barely audible, seeming to float on the gentle breeze. It grazed her eardrum like dew on a rose petal in the misty morning. She opened her eyes, just realizing that she was, in fact, drifting off. She met his gaze, staring into his deep, hazel eyes. They were dilated and glossed over.

He opened his mouth to speak, but she took her hand off of his and put a finger to his lips.

She knew what he was asking and smiled faintly. "Friend Mulder, you don't have to ask any more."

He smiled.

She dropped her hand and allowed her lids to slide close and tipped her head upward slightly and waited.

She didn't have to.

His lips met hers, soft and feather light, a simple contact of flesh upon flesh. Then his lips then parted ever so slightly, just to close again, teasing her bottom lip with the gentle squeeze.

His mouth opened again, but this time she did likewise. She closed it lightly around his upper lip as he tickled her bottom one once more.

He then brought his lips back to center and kissed her closed-lipped, applying a small amount of pressure. He remained for a time, slowly stroking her cheek with his thumb.

He then pulled back and opened his eyes. He studied her face for the split-second that her eyes remained shut; her flaming hair, pale skin, faded, red lips that he now knew were soft and malleable, her long, defined eyelashes and faint freckles that trailed across her nose and cheek bones.

Her eyes fluttered open and she looked at him, feeling that warm sensation like waves inside her body. All she wanted to do was huddle her face into his chest, letting him hold her, feeling his warmth seep into her.

She watched his face, with a small grin upon it, as his thumb still stroked her face, tangling with her hair slightly.

And as if noticing the newfound texture of her fiery locks, her directed his line of vision from her eyes to where his thumb met the tiny filaments. He adjusted his hand to bring his fingers up, brushing her hair behind her ear. He did this slowly, delicately, seemingly engrossed in what he must have considered tedious work.

Dana scanned his face, seeing a million things running across his mind, just to be replaced with even more thoughts.

"Dana?" His voice was hardly above a breath.

"Yes, friend Mulder?"

His gaze met hers again. He lifted his free hand and brought it up to have the palm face her.

"Bring your hand up to mine."

She obeyed, placing her palm to his, having the fingers line up exactly.

She studied their hands, how white her skin was compared to his, how much longer his fingers were, and their thickness. But, most evident, was the energy that surged from his flesh to hers, and she found herself pressing into his hand, to get the most contact.

He pressed back, for he must have been receiving the same energy from her.

_How did he know that hands can kiss too? Or did he know? Could it just have been…instinct?_

She smiled and faced him again, finding the faintest of smiles in his features.

He shifted his fingers slowly to have them vine around hers. She kept hers extended for a moment longer, then bent them to hold his hand back.

"We better be heading back, Dana; the sun has set." He shifted his eyes to the horizon behind her.

She turned her head to see the last of the golden-orange sphere disappear. She heard the creaking of chains as Mulder stood up. He pulled her up with him and she stood next to him, her small feet nearly encased in the soft, cool mud.

"We better run if we want to get back by your uncle's curfew," Mulder remarked.

"I'll race you," Dana said slyly.

He stared at her and smirked, in partial disbelief, but was soon proven wrong when she released his hand and took off toward the street, laughing.

For split second, he stared at his now splattered jeans from her wake, then tore after her, laughing just as joyfully.

XXX

Dana Scully awoke with a smile on her face. She gazed out her window to see the soft yellow rays shine upon her, warming her. She turned to lie on her back and stared at the ceiling.

Mulder had left earlier than expected last night. After they reached the house, half exhausted, he said a quick goodbye and left, saying that he needed to meet up with his father at his house.

She went into the house and instantly got ready for bed. She brushed her teeth and threw some pajamas on and crawled into bed.

She blushed as she stared at the milky swirls. She had slept on her side that night, and pretended that Mulder's body was spooned around hers, his arms wrapped around her middle, pulling her close to him. She was slightly ashamed of this, but not overly so. She knew it was a childish, immature fantasy (that was the part she was ashamed of) but it was a nice fantasy all the same. And the fact that it wasn't real made it all the better. She knew she wasn't ready for anything of that extreme nature, but she also knew that no other boy would be in the picture when the time came.

She arose and slipped her slippers on, and looked at the clock. 7:44 A.M. She sneaked downstairs and found no Aram. She spied a note on the dining room table.

She picked it up:

_Rin-Tin-Tin,_

_I had to leave early for work for a business meeting. Please take care of the girls (and Fox when he comes over)._

She smiled. _**When**__ he comes over._ There was no "if" anymore.

_And gather the mail when it is dropped off. If your letter is in there, I'm sorry. We will all miss you, Dana. I hope there will be time for a proper goodbye, depending on the time on the ticket._

_With love,_

_Aram_

And, as if on cue, she heard the sound of and engine and peeked out the widow, seeing the postman drive away, leaving the lid to the mailbox slightly ajar.

She didn't know how long she just stared at that tiny white mailbox across the street, outside that double-paned, large widow with the fluffy, white curtains, but she finally moved from where she stood and went outside, walking along the gravelly driveway. Any other time, she would have noted how weird the little stones felt when pressed upon with slippers, but her mind was locked on the tiny little mailbox.

She finally reached it, and stood there for a few long, stretching moments. And with a shaky, tentative hand, as if it was going to burn her, she slowly grasped the handle and swung it open.

A single envelope, thick and slightly bulging.

She picked it up and read the outside.

Tears fell upon the envelope, smudging the ink that indicated that it held one airplane ticket, one way to San Diego.

XXX

Author's Note: Wow. Long time since the last update, hence the long chapter :). Sorry this chapter ends with such a sad note. Because I'm apparently going through some SERIOUS writers block, I won't set any kind of deadline for the next chapter. Hope you enjoyed reading this and please review!!!!!


	12. Fading Into Memories

Title: And Then there were Tears

Rating: Really PG, but PG-13 to be safe. Mostly for the first part (you'll see what I mean).

Author's note: At the end

**Chapter 12: Fading into Memories**

Mulder woke before the sun came up. This didn't bother him, however, because he was used to not sleeping at all. At night, even when during the school season, he would say up wandering the town, or stay in his room doing his homework, reading a book or listening to the radio. Sleep used to be his refuge, his escape from reality, and he dreamed of his childhood days of happiness with Samantha, but that had changed. He'd just acquired this problem after Lidia's death, and nightmares of her and his sister ruled his dreams. Unable to face the death and sadness, he simply stayed awake.

But not anymore; since Dana Scully had entered his life, something had happened, something bigger than a turn around. His life no longer seemed to stagnate, but was more joyful with each day that passed. And he never thought another person could do that to him, especially a girl.

Mulder knew what a girl was; of course there had been Lidia, but she was like the mother he never had. And after he got out of the hospital, and had school to go back to, all of his friends had deserted him. He knew it was no fault of theirs, for their parents had told them to stay away. But it wasn't too long before the fairer sex started to show interest. There wasn't much talking involved, but it was better than being avoided. He soon learned what a girl was: a vessel of lust, hunger, greed. He would crave to attract them, and he never had to do any but mind his own business and they would show up on their own. Conversations consisted of nothing but sweet talk and, depending on their speed, a couple of days or even weeks of wooing would follow. He knew what they wanted, and when they were ready, he gave it to them. He quickly found out that they were gone the day after, if not that same day. Still, it was fun while it lasted, and there was always another girl that would show up soon enough and everything would be repeated.

Until _she_ came.

Dana Scully broke all the rules, the definition, the very essence of what he believed to be female. He would have started off by saying that they were friends, but there was really nowhere to begin. She didn't see him as something to take advantage of, which was what any other girl would do. She saw him as an equal, and she talked to him as such. She accepted him for who he was and made her family do the same. And now she was leaving, which all of his old girlfriends (even the ones who stayed longer) had done with a smile that you couldn't mop off. Dana wasn't smiling. He had to convince her not to cry.

And she said something that he had never heard anyone say: _"I like you for who you are." _

He couldn't believe that anyone would say those words to him, but she had said them, and she wasn't lying. She had nothing to gain by saying that; she was giving something that she didn't need to give, and he felt unworthy of her gift.

But there was nothing to stop it. He couldn't tell her what to say or how to feel, and he couldn't control his feelings either. Spending time with her, touching her, kissing her; nothing had ever felt so right. And from all of this, he had slept a restful, dreamless sleep.

Mulder sat up in bed, stretching and yawning. Scratching the back of his head, he pushed the sheets off of him and climbed out of bed. He made his way to the bathroom to take a quick shower, making no effort to be quiet. He already knew his father wasn't home, but he checked his bedroom anyway. As empty as ever.

His father worked for the government, and was usually gone at odd, random hours, and wouldn't return for ages. He felt bad for lying to Dana about meeting his father last night, but it was getting late and he didn't want to overstay his welcome. When Aram was getting ready for bed, he already knew he was pushing the limit. Besides, he would see her today.

Finishing his shower, he shaved his face and threw some clothes on and glanced out the window. It was still much too early to leave for her house; the sun still slept and refused to show itself.

But he couldn't sit there knowing he wasn't even trying to get to her. He had to start to close the distance between them, and there was no room for waiting.

_Maybe if I made myself some coffee and walked really slow, the sun will be up by the time I get there. _

He went downstairs and that's just what he did.

XXX

Dana Scully entered the house, wiping her tear-stained cheeks, the letter dangling from her trembling fingers.

She pulled her hand from her face, studying it, cursing at its wetness.

_Come on. Get a grip. The girls will be up soon and you don't want them to see you like this. Stop crying and go make them some breakfast._

She laid the letter on the dining room table and made her way toward the kitchen. Passing the living room, a dark figure caught the corner of her eye and she jumped, gasping. She turned her head, her eyes wide with fear, but she relaxed and exhaled when she realized who it was.

"Damn it, Mulder, you scared me."

He got up from the couch and approached her. "Sorry, I didn't me to frighten you."

"How long have you been sitting there?" She wouldn't look him in the eye, rather stared into his grey t-shirt covered chest, which was a mere foot from the bridge of her nose.

He noticed this and cocked his head to one side and bobbed his chin in an attempt to get her to look up at him.

"About an hour. I didn't want to wake you, so I just sat down and waited for you to come down stairs. But when you did…I just…wanted to watch you." He paused for a split second and said softer, "Is that weird?"

She couldn't help it. Reddening slightly and grinning, she turned her head up and met his gaze, seeing he was blushing as well.

"If it is, weird feels pretty good."

He smiled.

She ducked her head shyly and tucked her hair behind her ear. "I'm not even dressed."

His expression softened.

_Does she not know? Doesn't she have any idea? God, she's beautiful._

He lifted his hand and brushed her cheek with the backs of his fingers. Dana found his knuckles, however rough, to be smooth and gentle as they slowly made their way across her skin, as if not to leave any evidence of their trespasses.

What she didn't realize was that Mulder was caressing her lightly because didn't want to leave any kind of mark on her skin he knew to be beautiful. He almost didn't want to touch her; she was too precious, sacred. But he was discovering that no matter how many times that thought would cross his mind, the scenario would always end the same: giving into temptation, although respectful. He had a hard time describing it. It wasn't at all confusing; he could pin point the exact sensation and feeling he got when he was around her. There were just no words that could ever match it; this divineness that he never felt with any other. 

She glanced at him briefly, only moving her eyes, then stared back down at his feet.

"Go ahead and get dressed. I'll wait for you," he murmured, letting his hand depart from her flesh and go back down to his side.

She tipped her chin up to look at him. She was smiling. "I won't be long."

He watched her turn and make her way upstairs, and knew her words to be true. He went back into the living room and sat on the couch, unaware that if he would have looked to his right, he would have noticed the letter on the table, the letter that would change everything.

XXX

Leslie's eyes fluttered open as she inhaled the light fragrance of oatmeal into her small, button nose. Yawning, she sat up, pushing her long, chocolaty curls out of her face. Looking out the window into the sun's rays, her stomach grumbled, the smell of food grazing her nose's membrane once again. She got up from her bed, glancing at her sister, still deep in slumber. Any other morning, she would have woken her, but she didn't feel like doing so this time. It was a strange feeling for the child, wanting to do something without her twin for the first time.

Being as quiet as possible for a five-year-old, she crept out of the room and made her way down stairs, following breakfast's scent. Peering into the kitchen, she saw her older cousin stirring gooey, but thickening oats in a pot on the stove. She was laughing and looking up at her friend that stood next to her; _Mommy's friend_.

Leslie, in her youth, wondered how she could be laughing with a boy. At pre-school, she and her sister were put in a class with boys and girls, and they would spend time with the girls, because the boys were, she was quick to learn the word, brats. Boys were yucky, as her father had been telling her. And yet, here was her _girl_ cousin having fun with her _boy_ friend.

It was a very peculiar morning this little girl.

Her stomach growled again, loudly, and the two older youths turned at the sound.

"Leslie!" Dana said, smiling just as wide as Mulder. "Good morning! Where's your sister?"

_Asleep._

She wanted to say it, but she still had a hard time opening her mouth and uttering such words. So, instead, she said the next best thing: "Oatmeal."

XXX

Finished with cooking, Dana told Mulder to set Leslie up at the table with a bowl and spoon as she went to go get Madelynn. Mulder did so, letting the little girl choose what color bowl she wanted and leading her to the table, letting her choose her seat as well. As he pushed her chair in, he noticed a letter; _the_ letter.

Leslie watched him as he let go of her chair and reached for it, his brow pursing. He picked it up and twirled it in his fingers, as if he had to play with it first before he read it. Finally allowing it to rest between his thumb and forefinger, he scanned its label with his hazel eyes. They widened, and moving nothing but his arm, he placed the letter back on the table.

He stared into the abyss for a moment, then, with some unknown compulsion, he turned his head to face Leslie. She was staring at him, her eyes just as wide as his. It didn't seem possible, but she seemed to know what had just happened, that a big change was about to occur. She could feel the sadness radiating from the boy before her, and it was a strange connection that confused her more than the sudden _disappearance_ of her mother.

"Yes, Leslie's down there, Madelynn."

Leslie and Mulder both looked toward the stairway at the sound of Dana's voice. She emerged, holding the hand of the other twin. The redhead looked up and paused, nothing coming out of her mouth, nor was there any movement of her legs. The two people staring at her with such silence and such blank expressions, she couldn't help but stop and stare herself. She then lowered her eyes to see Mulder's hand resting on the letter; _her_ letter.

She exhaled, and started to walk again.

"Madelynn, go sit down and I'll get you a bowl and spoon, okay?"

She looked up at her older cousin and nodded, feeling the seriousness of the situation as her sister did. She made her way toward the table as the two teens went into the kitchen.

The girls stared at each other, both knowing that any other time they would have eavesdropped, but something told both of them to stay out of it. And that same something told them it would take an extraordinarily long time for Dana to get that bowl and spoon.

XXX

Dana bit her lower lip as she stared at the cupboard before her. Mulder was standing next to her, waiting for her to speak. She wondered if he was mad at her for not telling him right away. But she knew that that was just the back of her mind talking. Mulder would never be mad. The silence between them existed because neither one didn't know what to say.

There was nothing _**to**_ say.

Letting her lip free and having her teeth retreat back into her mouth, she swallowed, closing her eyes. Not in guilt or withdraw, but with the absolute pain of sadness. The inevitable was something she was not used to facing. She had always found a way to get out or through any problem, but there was no fighting this one.

She was going home, and leaving Mulder behind.

She felt his arms wrap around her waist, interrupting her thoughts. He had made his way behind her and she hadn't noticed. He then, due to extreme height differentiation, stepped back some leaned gently into her, pressing his chest into her upper back and resting his head on her shoulder.

Her eyes remained closed and he let his lids become heavy and curtain over his eyes as well. She inhaled as he exhaled for the first second, then their breaths became matched, as if they had transformed into one entity, one beating heart. And it seemed to be true, for Dana could feel his heart thumping through his chest, making light taps on her back, almost like kisses. She felt her own heart beating, and found herself becoming lightheaded when its pattern copied Mulder's exactly.

He shifted slightly. "Dana, I don't want to, but I have to stand up or you're gonna need a stool."

She opened her eyes and laughed, a true laugh that she only had when he was with her. How could he take her so high and yet still keep her feet on the ground?

"Go ahead and stand, friend Mulder," she murmured, still giggling.

He obeyed, and upon doing so, she turned around and, gripping the edge of the countertop, hoisted herself up to sit upon it.

She was now eye to eye with him. She smiled, liking the new point of view. "Is this better?" she quipped.

He grinned and, stepping forward, placed his hands on her waist and gave her a quick kiss on the lips.

The two second touching of lips was fiery and yet not unlike the creamy feeling of silk. It comforted her, also saddening her more. This was oh so real, but was soon to fade into memory, a memory which would be all that was left of this, of him, of _them_.

Mulder broke the kiss and leaned his head forward to rest upon hers, closing his eyes again. His fingers started to make small circles along the crook of her waist.

Dana closed her eyes in response and, knowing he would never let her fall, let her hands leave the sides of the counter to come up and weave around the back of his neck.

"I don't want to go," she breathed out, barley a whisper.

"I know," he replied, equally quiet.

It was too overwhelming. She inhaled deeply, in attempt to hold back a sob, but the tears rolled anyway. And once they started, they would not stop. One came right after the other, as silent as a windless winter night.

Upon hearing the pitter-patter sound of her tears landing on the countertop, Mulder lifted his head, looking upon her fair, tear-stained face.

She looked up and opened her reddening eyes, the small water droplets unceasing. She saw his face so sad, forlorn, hoping he could wish her sadness away.

His hands left her waist to come up to her face and cup her cheeks, his thumbs wiping the wetness away.

His eyes met her. "It's going to be okay, Dana. I can promise you that. Everything is going to be okay."

She searched his eyes, finding something there that she knew she didn't have to look for.

"I believe you."

He smiled and she did so in return, finding that the tears had finally stopped.

"We have to let go, Dana; at least for now. The girls are hungry."

She nodded and let her hands slide from his neck. He let go of her face and backed up, allowing her to slide off the counter. She grabbed the bowl and spoon as Mulder got the oatmeal and the sugar.

They walked into the dining room together to have breakfast.

XXX

Author's Note: Sorry for the long wait, and I know this chapter is half the length of the last one and it ends in an unusual place, but at least it's finally here, right? This is kinda just a filler chapter, random POVs and stuff, but I needed a prelude to the next chapter. Thanks for reading and, again, I can't promise the next chapter will be up soon. Please review!!!!!


	13. Doll

Title: And Then there were Tears

Rating: PG

Feedback: Want some always!!!

Disclaimer: It's been awhile since I did this so, here it is…I DO NOT OWN THE X FILES OR MULDER AND SCULLY OR TWENTIETH CENTURY FOX. SO DON"T SUE ME!!!

Author's Note: At the end (but you already knew that).

XXX

**Chapter 13: Doll**

Dana said nothing as they drove around the small Massachusetts town, Mulder behind the wheel of his blue Chevy truck.

After Aram had come home, he agreed to let them spend their last night together alone, and Mulder had run home to pick Dana up in his hardly used vehicle.

They knew it was their last night together because the time on the ticket read 11:30 A.M. July 3rd, tomorrow.

And Mulder's truck was hardly used because he'd rather walk. His parents had got him the truck for his 16th birthday and, like the family boat, they didn't care what he did with it. Probably would have bought him another one if he wrecked it.

He knew he was a spoiled child. He knew anyone in town would do anything to get just a portion of his family's riches.

Money was defiantly never a problem for the Mulder family, so neither was Oxford for next year.

And college was the only time Mulder ever really cared about the money.

It wasn't that money meant nothing to Mulder, he just never used the wealth that he had access to to its full extent…to _any_ extent.

He didn't wear any designer clothes, didn't have any expensive anything, except when his parents bought it for him.

Like the shiny blue Chevy that he was hugging a curve with right now.

It was dusk. The sun had slipped behind the horizon, more quickly than he would have liked. It was their last sunset they would ever see together, and it was already gone.

He looked over at the small red head in the passenger's seat. He smiled slightly when he saw that her head resting on the window, her eyes closed, her hands neatly folded in her lap.

_No wonder she's been so quiet. The twins must have worn her out today. I know I'm exhausted from chasing those two. _

He thought it was strange that they would spend their last night together like this, them driving around in silence. He figured they would talk, but they had done that all day, babysitting her ever so energetic cousins. They had talked just like they always had, giving little pieces of personal information, but also of things that didn't matter at all, and still meant everything in the world to them.

He also thought that they would hold each other tonight too, but there had been no lacking of that during the day either. Even if they had scratched out all the hand holding and hugging, there was that piggyback ride he gave her, because after he gave rides to the girls, they made him give Dana one, claiming it 'wasn't fair'. And then there was that tickling war, and he couldn't even start to explain how they got themselves in (and out) of that one.

He chuckled. How could the simplest, most childish acts be so fun and…well…_intimate_ when he was around her, the girl asleep in his passenger's seat, the _woman_ they call Dana Scully.

He glanced over at her again, and seeing her so peaceful and alive and _real_ before him, it made it more unbearable to imagine her gone than it ever was before.

He came to a stop sign and stopped the car completely and reached over to shake her awake, but found that he didn't have the heart to.

He put the truck in gear and continued to drive, suffering with his inner turmoil to leave her to her dreams.

XXX

"(Groan) Mulder?"

"Shhhh, I'm here, Doll. It's okay.

Dana yawned and lifted her head from the window and moved to sit in her seat correctly. She opened her eyes and noticed the darkness.

"How long have we been driving?" she asked, her voice groggy.

"Long time. It's almost ten."

"Can't believe I fell asleep. You could have woken me."

He shook his head. "No, you look too cute when you're asleep."

She threw him a look and lightly punched his arm.

He chuckled, partly because he could see the smile she was trying to hide.

"How far are we out of town?"

"Not far. I know my way back, if you're worried."

"You and me, lost? Why would that worry me?"

They both laughed this time, but Dana stopped when the fogginess of sleep had finally lifted from her and she remembered.

"What did you call me?"

"What?"

"When I woke up."

He paused. "What are you talking about?"

"When I woke up, you called me 'Doll'."

He pursed his brow, not recalling. But he knew her words must be true, and his lower lip pouted slightly, thinking.

"Mulder?"

"Sorry if you don't like it. It just sort of slipped out."

"Oh, no I like it. You just never called me any kind of pet name before. And I was expecting something more original, like 'Baby'."

"No, never 'Baby'," he muttered softly.

She exhaled. It could have been a snort; he couldn't tell.

"Why not?"

He glanced over at her and smiled, on the verge of laughing, but the sounds of laughter never escaping his lips.

"Because you're not a baby."

"I'm not a baby?"

Mulder thought it was ironic that she sounded so young when she repeated his words in the first person.

"Definitely not a baby."

She leaned her head up against the window and stared out into the blackness. For some strange reason, this conversation made her feel uncertain, and a little scared. She felt as if she had inadvertently closed one door and opened another, and there was no going back. She knew she should say something, but she couldn't find anything to say.

She felt his hand touch her shoulder, his elegant, piano-man fingers clasping around her flesh. He gave her a gentle squeeze.

She smiled and lifted her hand to hold his. She knew there was no reason to be afraid, because Mulder would never think less of her. Never.

"So I'm not a baby, but somehow I'm a doll?"

He snorted with laughter. "Yes, you're a doll."

She moved their hands so that his rested on her thigh with her fingers weaved through his.

"And how am I a doll, friend Mulder?"

His hand tightened around hers. "I don't know. You just are."

XXX

They got back to Aram's house around 12:30. Mulder pulled up in the driveway and shut off his car. He looked over at Dana's once again sleeping body, and the ceasing of motion didn't wake her like he thought it would.

And once again, he did not have the heart to wake her himself.

He got out of the car as quietly as he could and walked over to her side. He opened her door and, being silent and gentle, unbuckled her seatbelt and cradled her in his arms. He lifted her out of his truck and proceeded to carry her to the front door.

She was incredibly light, and he had a hard time looking away from her peaceful face nestled into his chest.

He was surprised when the door opened for him when he reached it. He was thankful for the darkness, for he reddened slightly as Aram stared at him.

"I, um, she was sleeping and I didn't want to wake her," he said quietly.

Aram stood there for a moment, simply staring at the boy who was protectively holding his sleeping niece in his arms.

"Come on in, Son, and be careful not to wake her."

Mulder smiled and walked through the held open door.

"Go on and take her to bed," Aram whispered, shutting the door. "And you got three minutes, and I won't have any 'run overs' on this one."

"You won't, Sir-I mean Aram. Which room is hers?"

"Upstairs, two doors to the left."

The two men nodded and Mulder made his way to the staircase, and Aram watched as he disappeared.

Mulder made it to the second floor and eventually to her room's door. He entered the room and stopped.

It was dark and nothing could be made out except for outlines, but it didn't matter. He could _feel_ it.

_Lidia made this room. This is Lidia's room. _

All of those bittersweet memories hit him all at once, and he couldn't help but let one tear escape and roll down his cheek.

_Thump_

_Thump_

_Thump_

He was brought back to reality by the sensation of Dana's beating heart, and her warm breath on his chest.

_Inhale _

_Exhale _

_Inhale _

_Exhale_

He smiled, feeling warmth surge through his whole body.

He walked over to the bed and pulled the covers back, gently laying her down on the mattress. He then pulled the covers up over her and pulled back some.

Oh, how much he wanted he wanted to crawl in next to her, spoon his body around hers and pull her close, and oh, how much it hurt to know that her couldn't.

He tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and kissed her forehead. Not a quick peck, but a long, warm sweet pressing of his lips to her flesh.

She stirred slightly.

"Shhhhhh, Dana, go back to sleep," he murmured, barely a whisper.

He stood up and crept toward the door.

"I love you, friend Mulder."

He stopped and turned to look at her. He wondered if she was awake or if her words came from some sub-conscience dream, but that aspect didn't matter. What mattered was that either way, the words were for him, and they where absolutely, honestly true.

"I love you too, Doll."

He left her room and shut the door.

XXX

Author's Note: Okay, so this chapter wasn't so long either, but that's just how they seem to turn out, short and sweet. As for the theme of this chapter, I wasn't gonna have Mulder give Dana any pet names, but I simply couldn't help myself. Dana calls him 'friend Mulder', so I felt that it would just be right for Mulder to call her something other than her name. I wanted to stray away from 'Baby' and 'Angel', and names that are waaaaaaayyyyy too sappy and just mush mush mush. So, I settled on 'Doll'. Don't ask me why, I don't know how I came up with that one, and although it seems unorthodox, if you think about it, it so fits. Like Mulder and Scully, although they are such opposites, they belong together! Thanks for reading and please review!!!!


	14. The Cross

Title: And Then there were Tears

Rating: PG

Feedback: Yes Please :)

Author's Note: At the end.

XXX

**Chapter 14: The Cross**

Dana awoke to someone shaking her shoulder.

"Get up, Rin-Tin-Tin. It's morning."

She groaned, not wanting to move. She was too comfortable.

"Ugh, Uncle Aram, five more minutes?"

She rolled over onto her back and blinked her eyes open, her optic nerves not liking the brightness of the room.

_Room?_

She looked up at Aram's slightly smiling face, now truly awake.

"How did I get here?"

Aram put on a face she had never seen before. He was still smiling, but there was a strange light in his eye that made her brow purse.

"You were carried. Come on, Dana; we have to leave for the airport in an hour."

Her heart fell a little. "Okay, I'll be out in a minute.

He nodded and left the room.

She closed her eyes and sighed, then suddenly grinned. Aram had entered the room, _Lidia's _room. He was able to be in it now, the first time since his wife died.

Dana couldn't believe that so much had changed since she arrived to this small town. She had expected so little, and had shared so much, and she could only exist in it for one more hour. That was all she had left. She knew she would miss sleeping in this bed, being in this house, just being _here_.

But an hour was squeezing it tight, so she decided she might as well get up and get ready.

Opening her eyes, she threw the covers off of her and swung her feet and placed them on the floor to achieve the seated position.

She arched and eyebrow when she noticed her shoes were still on.

She then smiled and let out a muffled giggle, for there was only one person who would be so oblivious.

_Mulder._

She envisioned him carrying her from the passenger's seat of his truck to her bed, and only regretted that she had not been awake for the experience.

She slipped her shoes off and made her way toward the bathroom.

Having cleaned and dressed, she went downstairs to make herself some toast to see Leslie and Madelynn with their backpacks, holding the hands of a tall, thin woman with long, black hair. She appeared to be in her late 30's.

"Cousin Dana!" the twins chided, running over to her and hugging her waist. The woman, smiled sweetly and approached Dana.

"Hello, you must be Dana, Aram's niece. I'm, Amber, Lidia's sister." She held out her hand and Dana took it, shaking it briefly.

"You're taking the girls?"

"Just for today. My brother-in-law says you're taking a trip up to the airport and two five-year-olds can be a hassle in that kind of environment." She laughed slightly.

Dana grinned in returned. "No, they're really sweet girls." She looked down at the girls smiling faces.

"Yes they are. Come on, L and M, it's time to go."

The girls left Dana to take Amber's hands and followed her towards the door.

"It was nice meeting you!" Amber remarked, smiling.

"Likewise."

Suddenly, Leslie let go of her aunt's hand. "Wait," she stated, then turned to her cousin and approached her.

Dana kneeled to her level. "What is it, Sweetie?" Leslie said nothing, then pulled her golden cross necklace up and over her head and held it out, as if offering it to her.

Dana eyed her curiously, then realized that, indeed, she was giving the necklace to her.

"No, Leslie, I can't."

"For you," the girl murmured.

"No, it's yours."

But the girl just stood there, her arm outstretched, the chain dangling from her thumb and forefinger. "For you," she repeated.

Dana knew the only way out of this was to comply, so she reached her open palm to hover below the chain as the youth released it from her grasp. The teen simply stared at the small, gold ripples in her hand for a moment. She undid the clasp and put the necklace around her neck, feeling compelled to do so.

Having completed the task, she played with the small cross with her fingers.

"Beautiful," Leslie whispered. Dana looked up to see her smiling.

"Yes, Leslie, very beautiful."

"L, we have to go," Amber called, but not in a mean way.

"Bye-bye," Leslie said, and trotted over to her aunt and followed her to the door and finally outside.

"Bye-bye," Dana whispered, her hand not leaving the cross.

XXX

Mulder had been sleeping well until he heard a pounding on his door.

"What?" he called, his voice laden with sleep.

"Get up and pack your stuff."

He sat up in bed, suddenly wide-awake.

"Dad, what are you doing home?"

"Shut up and hurry up."

He looked at his clock, and realized that Dana's plane left in two hours, and the airport was an hour away.

"Shit. Dad what am I packing for?" After getting no response, he rolled out of bed and made his way to the bathroom to take a shower.

He cleaned up and got dressed as fast as he could.

"Where's your stuff?" Bill Mulder badgered, confronting his son when he emerged from his room.

"I'm not packing, Dad. I gotta go…"

"Oh, yes you are! Your mother's here to take you."

"What?"

"She's in the dining room waiting. Now go get…Fox!"

Mulder ignored his father completely and made his way toward the dining room. He rolled his eyes slightly at the sight of his frail mother sitting at the table, her long, graying hair pulled back in a loose ponytail.

Teena smiled faintly at him, then pursed her brow.

"Where's your stuff, Fox?"

He sighed heavily, looking away from her and making his way toward the door. "I can't go with you today, Mom. I have somewhere I gotta be."

Her sweet disposition degraded into bitterness. "You're not going anywhere, Fox."

Her tone made him stop and heave with disappointment. He turned to face her, staring into her narrowed eyes.

"I came to get you, and that is exactly what I intend to do."

"Mom, please. I'll be back as soon as possible. It's not that I don't want to go with you; it's just…"

"Fox, get your shit NOW!"

Mulder looked up at his father, who was now standing in the doorway between the living room and kitchen, glaring at him with even more intensity than his mother.

"I'm sorry," Mulder said cryptically, and went out the door.

He jumped into his truck as his dad walked outside.

"Your mother won't tolerate this," he said sternly, walking up to the driver's side window, which happened to be rolled down.

Mulder started the truck anyway, and Bill put his hand on the door, gripping tightly.

He watched his son turn his head to meet his glaring eyes with his own.

"Frankly, Dad, I don't give a damn." He pulled quickly out of the driveway and sped off, leaving his father to nothing but his own thoughts.

XXX

"Can we just wait another minute?" Dana pleaded, chasing after her uncle as he made his way out of the house and toward his car, carrying her bags.

"Rin-Tin-Tin, you know I would, but we have to go now or we're going to miss your flight," he replied, placing her stuff in the trunk.

"Please, Aram, you know he wouldn't let me leave without saying goodbye!"

"I'm sorry, Dana, truly I am, but we have to go. Come on." He opened the passenger side door for her and waited.

She stood there, twirling Leslie's cross back and forth, looking down the street, the way he always came, the way he should be coming, but wasn't.

She allowed a tear to roll down her cheek and lowered her head, crossing her arms, pressing Mulder's jacket closer to her, but feeling colder than she had before.

She made her way toward the car and got in. Aram shut her door and got in the driver's seat, starting the engine.

Dana put her head against the window, silent tears streaming down her face, her arms still crossed tightly around her middle.

Aram put his hand on her shoulder and gave her a reassuring squeeze, truly feeling sorry, then returned his hand to the wheel and backed out of the driveway and turned into the road.

Dana tried so hard not to sob as Aram put the car in drive. As they started forward, something made her want to look in the rearview mirror, but she denied it, not wanting to feel sadder than she already was. But the urge became more pressing; it almost spoke to her.

_Look in the mirror, Dana. _

She found her eyes shifting toward the small, reflective box to see a blue Chevy truck pull into Aram's driveway.

"Stop the car!" She opened her door and jumped out before Aram could bring the car to a complete stop. She ran toward the truck, not a long distance, but it seemed like miles to Dana.

Mulder got out of his truck and started to approach the house.

"Mulder!" she screamed. He stopped and turned towards her voice. She ran to him and wrapped her arms around him, holding on to him tighter than she ever held onto anything.

"Dana, it's okay. I'm right here. Look at me."

She obliged, pulling away from him and tilting her head up. "I left you; we drove off and I didn't wait."

"But, the truck…"

"We took the car."

He smiled, bringing his hand up to her face, caressing her cheek. "You should go; you're gonna miss your plane."

She brought her hand up to meet his. "Come with me."

"Dana…"

"Just to the airport. I need you to hold me one last time."

"Even if it's in front of your uncle?" he jested, but his voice was soft, low, only meant for her.

She smiled. "Yeah, even if."

They linked hands and half walked, half ran to Aram's car.

XXX

Author's Note: Sorry for taking forever and a half to update, but here it is finally! Hope you like :). I thought it would be cool if Scully got the cross necklace from Leslie, make it more meaningful than the two condradicting stories in the series (15th birthday present vs. Christmas present). Please review!


End file.
